Eat Great…See Great! - Bella Eye Care Optometry

Researchers have zeroed in on an enzyme — found in natural foods like broccoli and cucumbers — that can slow some of the chronic conditions that come with age. So far the findings are limited to mice, but the results are encouraging enough to start testing it in people. In a paper published in Cell Metabolism, researchers led by the Washington University School of Medicine reported that they found an agent that can balance out what happens in aging cells to essentially make them behave as they would in a younger mouse. That substance, as it turns out, is also found in a number of natural foods, including broccoli, cucumbers, cabbage, and edamame. Another reason to eat your vegetables.

The compound, called nicotinamide mononucleotide (NMN), is involved in producing another compound that is critical for energy metabolism. When they gave normal aging mice infusions of NMN, they made more of that energy-fueling compound and some of the biological problems associated with aging went away. The NMN-treated animals did not gain as much weight, they were able to convert food into energy more efficiently, their blood sugar was better—even their eyesight improved. The mice receiving NMN were also able to prevent some of the genetic changes associated with aging.

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