Fast food – early aging?
In experiments on transgenic mice, Harvard University researchers Mutsuko Ohnishi and M. Shawkat Razzaque found that a high level of phosphoric acid salts in the body accelerates the aging process. In addition, a large amount of phosphates in the body increases the severity and likelihood of age-related pathologies, such as chronic kidney disease and vascular calcification, and can also cause severe muscle and skin atrophy. The results of the work were published on April 23 in the preliminary on-line version of The FASEB Journal in the article "Dietary and genetic evidence for phosphate toxicity accelerating mammalian aging".Phosphates are part of all body tissues and are necessary for the transmission of intercellular signals, ensuring energy metabolism, synthesis of nucleic acids and maintaining acid-base balance. Violations of the phosphate content are characteristic of various diseases of bones, heart and kidneys, but the role of toxicity of these compounds in the aging process of mammals is unclear.
Phosphates are widely used as food additives that prolong the shelf life of products, increase the volume of products (for example, sausages) by binding water and improve its appearance. Considering the huge amount of finished products "enriched" with phosphates consumed by modern man, including carbonated drinks, sweets and the infamous, but, despite everything, popular "fast food", the study of the effect of these compounds on the human body is a task of extreme importance.
As part of their work, the authors analyzed the effect of high phosphate levels on the health of three mouse lines. The first-line mice did not have the functional klotho gene, the absence of which increases the level of phosphates in the body to toxic levels. The lifespan of these mice was 8-15 weeks. The mice of the second group, in addition to the klotho gene, also did not have the NaPi2a gene. The absence of these two genes significantly reduced the phosphate content in the animals and increased their life expectancy to 20 weeks. The mice of the third group also did not have the klotho and NaPi2a genes, but they were kept on a diet with a high content of phosphates. All animals of this group, as well as mice of the first group, died within 15 weeks. It is quite possible that they affect other mammals, including humans, in a similar way.
The results obtained by the researchers indicate that a high level of phosphates in the body somehow accelerates the aging process, and are another argument in favor of refusing to eat ready-made products, especially those offered by numerous fast food restaurants and eateries.
Portal "Eternal youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru based on ScienceDaily: Early Death by Junk Food? High Levels of Phosphate in Sodas and Processed Foods Accelerate the Aging Process in Mice.
04.05.2010