Collagen — which supplies structural help and power to your tissues1,2,3 — accounts for about 30% of the entire protein in your physique. Twenty-eight p.c of collagen, in flip, is made up of the amino acid glycine.4
Glycine, proline and hydroxyproline5 are the uncooked supplies for connective tissue, however the advantages of glycine go far past connective tissue well being. In reality, mounting analysis suggests glycine could play an vital position within the growing old course of.
Whereas your physique does make glycine, endogenous manufacturing decreases with age, and when you solely eat purple meat, and infrequently or by no means devour meals made with collagen-rich connective tissue, you’re possible not getting sufficient out of your weight loss plan both. The chart beneath particulars the amino acid ratios of gelatin/collagen versus purple meat (beef). As you possibly can see, gelatin/collagen comprises vastly extra glycine than beef.
Glycine Has Many Antiaging Advantages
Glycine has been proven to increase lifespan in worms, mice and rats, and to enhance well being in mammalian fashions of age-related illness.6 In some animal research, consuming a weight loss plan containing 8% to 12% glycine elevated the median lifespan by as a lot as 28.4%.7
As defined by Siim Land, writer of “Metabolic Autophagy: Follow Intermittent Fasting and Resistance Coaching to Construct Muscle and Promote Longevity,” within the video above, glycine induces autophagy (a “self-eating” course of wherein your physique digests broken cells) and mimics the longevity advantages of methionine restriction.8 Each of those results are associated to an enzyme known as glycine N-methyltransferase (GNMT).
Glycine is a receptor for GNMT, and the GNMT converts glycine to sarcosine, a metabolite that induces autophagy. GNMT additionally performs a task in methionine clearance.9 Methionine is concerned in most cancers cell development and metabolism, and limiting methionine has been proven to:10
- Inhibit most cancers cell development
- Prolong lifespan
- Decrease ranges of insulin, glucose and insulin-like development issue 1 (IGF-1)
- Scale back liver harm after publicity to harmful quantities of acetaminophen
- Scale back frailty
Even intermittently limiting methionine results in advantages like improved glucose homeostasis, decreased weight problems and safety in opposition to fatty liver illness.11 Glycine can also be a precursor to glutathione, a strong endogenous antioxidant that declines with age.
The shortage of glutathione in older adults could also be a component that drives the oxidative stress and mitochondrial dysfunction that results in age-related degeneration. Glycine additionally acts as a neurotransmitter12 and will play an vital position in melancholy.13 It’s additionally been proven to alleviate neuroinflammation and defend in opposition to cognitive deficits in mice with neurodegeneration.14
Glycine Reverses Growing old in Human Cells
In response to earlier analysis,15 glycine could even be chargeable for the epigenetic regulation that drives the growing old course of as a complete. As reported by Science Every day in 2015,16 opposite to fashionable perception, the growing old course of in your mitochondria will not be managed by DNA mutations in spite of everything, however quite by epigenetic regulation.
This epigenetic regulation seems to be dominated by two genes (CGAT and SHMT2) that regulate glycine manufacturing within the mitochondria. By altering the regulation of those genes, the researchers have been capable of both induce defects or restore mitochondrial perform in human fibroblast cell traces.
Remarkably, merely including glycine to the tradition medium of fibroblast cells taken from 97-year-old individuals restored the cells’ respiratory perform, which “means that glycine therapy can reverse the age-associated respiration defects within the aged human fibroblasts.” As such, glycine supplementation may probably give the aged “a brand new lease on life.”
Glycine Is Required in Every day Collagen Turnover
Making up 28% of your physique’s collagen, glycine is, after all, additionally required for optimum collagen synthesis. As defined by Land within the featured video:17
“Glycine additionally has an important position in antiaging immediately by serving to to scale back wrinkles, and collagen synthesis … The much less collagen or glycine you devour, the slower your collagen turnover is.
Gradual collagen turnover will increase the harm that happens to your collagen, resembling glycation and oxidation, and reduces collagen deposition into tissues.
Collagen … makes up your hair, enamel, pores and skin, nails, organs, arteries, cartilage, bones, tendons and ligaments. Collagen is actually the glue that holds you collectively. So, ensuring that you simply protect your collagen is essential for slowing down growing old, particularly with regards to wrinkles.
Beginning on the age of 20 you lose just below 10% of your pores and skin’s collagen content material each decade. So, by the point you are 75 years previous you’ll have misplaced 50% of your pores and skin’s collagen content material …
[U]p till very not too long ago it was thought that the collagen turnover was very gradual, and it solely occurred over the course of a few years — over the complete lifespan. Nevertheless, not too long ago it was proven that school turnover occurs every single day and is a part of your every day protein turnover.”
Glycine Protects Towards Age-Associated Illness
Glycine additionally helps mitigate power illness and incapacity, thereby growing your well being span. As reported in a 2023 scientific evaluate, glycine has been proven to:18
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Suppress tumor development in mice with melanoma19 |
Lower fasting glucose, insulin, triglyceride and IGF-1 in male rats20 |
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Protect muscle mass and cut back inflammatory markers in mice with most cancers cachexia21 |
Enhance endothelial perform in older rats22 |
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Scale back weight achieve and enhance bone mineral density in a mouse mannequin designed to imitate postmenopausal bone loss23 |
Defend in opposition to cardiac hypertrophy24 |
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Alleviate neuroinflammation and defend in opposition to cognitive deficits in mice with neurodegeneration25 |
Human trials additionally affirm that glycine is protecting in opposition to a variety of power ailments. As famous by Land:
“The advantages of glycine typically need to do with enhancing the blood sugar ranges, fasting insulin ranges, triglycerides, even decreasing the demand for sleep, enhancing mind perform and well being, serving to with simply total features of vitality.”
Different Well being Advantages of Glycine
Different well being advantages of glycine embrace:
- Improved sleep26
- Diminished irritation and oxidative harm, as glycine inhibits the consumption of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH). NADPH is used as a reductive reservoir of electrons to recharge antioxidants as soon as they develop into oxidized
- Diminished stress27
- Improved wound therapeutic28
- Improved intestine well being29
In his article “Gelatin, Stress, Longevity,”30 the late biologist, Ray Peat, reviewed an extended listing of well being situations that may be prevented or alleviated by glycine supplementation and/or elevated consumption of collagen or gelatin. These embrace:31
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Fibrosis |
Most bleeding issues, together with nosebleeds, extreme menstrual bleeding, bleeding ulcers, hemorrhoids and stroke. In response to Peat, glycine, taken shortly after a stroke, limits the harm and accelerates restoration |
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Epilepsy, by stabilizing nerves and elevating the quantity of stimulation required to activate nerves |
A number of sclerosis (MS), because of its antispastic results |
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Any situation involving extra prolactin, serotonin and/or cortisol, together with autism, postpartum and premenstrual issues, Cushing’s illness, diabetes, and impotence |
Fatigue |
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Muscular dystrophy and myasthenia gravis |
Metabolic problems32 |
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Nonalcoholic fatty liver illness (NAFLD)33 |
Schizophrenia34 |
How one can Optimize Your Glycine Consumption
In the case of optimizing your glycine consumption, you will have a number of primary choices:
1. Eat extra collagen or gelatin-rich meals, as glycine makes up almost one-third of collagen and gelatin. Examples embrace do-it-yourself bone broth made with bones and connective tissue from grass fed, organically raised animals, and rooster broth constructed from natural rooster toes. The claws are significantly wealthy in collagen.35
Not directly, animal meals resembling seafood, purple meat, poultry and dairy merchandise can even increase your glycine stage, as these meals include taurine, which will increase glycine.36
2. Take a high-quality collagen or gelatin complement.
3. Take a glycine complement. Pure glycine is out there in powder type and tends to be very inexpensive and straightforward to take, because it has a mildly candy taste.
Contemplating its many well being advantages, ensuring you get sufficient glycine in your weight loss plan can go a good distance towards enhancing your well being and life span. There’s no established every day requirement or higher restrict of glycine at present, so it’s arduous to make particular suggestions.
That mentioned, doses of three to five grams have been proven to enhance sleep.37 One examine38 estimated that most individuals are about 10 grams in need of what their our bodies want for all metabolic makes use of every day,39 and in a examine of individuals with metabolic syndrome, 15 grams of glycine a day for 3 months decreased oxidative stress and improved systolic blood stress.40 That ought to provide you with an approximate concept.
