What is the longevity drug that experts are recommending for our pets?

The drug that longevity experts in both human and veterinary medicine are most excited about is rapamycin.  There is so much science around rapamycin and  its benefits that it is the primary drug being used in the Dog Aging Project, a decade long study to learn how best to increase the health span of our pets.

What are the three best longevity drugs for pets? Here’s what the experts say:

The National Institute on Aging Interventional Testing Program (NIA ITP) is a series of tests on a wide variety of drugs and supplements performed on mice across multiple test sites. It’s a rigorous way to check the efficacy of these potentially life-changing drugs and root out the ones that fail to deliver on their longevity promises.  Over 90% of drugs and supplements tested fail, but there are two that were proven to extend life significantly.  One is rapamycin, the other is acarbose.  

Rapamycin

Rapamycin is right at the top of the NIA ITP’s list of longevity enhancers, because it has been tested a number of times with uniformly positive results.   Its benefits include…

• Significant benefits against many forms of cancer
• Reducing orthopedic inflammation
• Reducing and, in some cases, reversing heart disease
• Reducing the rate of progression in kidney disease
• Stimulating the immune response
• And even benefitting periodontal disease and old age hearing loss.

Better yet, it offers these benefits… SAFELY.  Only about 3% of the pets we have treated with rapamycin show ANY side effects, and these are generally limited to transient diarrhea as the intestines get used to their new friend.

Acarbose

Acarbose is a drug which is widely used in human medicine in the management of diabetes, but has been proven by the NIA ITP to actively extend lifespan… especially in males.  

Acarbose acts in the intestine to reduce blood sugar levels, which in turn has a number of benefits to our pets – not just in diabetes, but also by reducing inflammation and cancer risk.  

Even better, adding acarbose to rapamycin therapy showed a synergistic improvement of lifespan by up to 18% over just rapamycin by itself.  

Acarbose is another very safe drug, although it has been known to increase intestinal gas production– you’ve been warned – as pets adapt to it.

Metformin

Metformin is another human drug that has seen a lot of headlines for longevity lately.  By reducing blood sugar, it not only improves metabolic health but also to reduce body weight.   It has been proven beneficial in fighting cardiac disease and in some forms of cancer, and is a very safe drug when taken at recommended doses.

Rapamycin is considered the best longevity booster for our pets.

Rapamycin has many studies behind it, showing not only longevity benefits but also safety.  Here we go…

Rapamycin can protect heart health

Rapamycin is a powerful way to support cardiac health in pets as they age, both by reducing inflammation and also by directly fighting, and in some cases, reversing, deadly cardiomyopathy in both dogs and cats.

Rapamycin can fight and slow the progression of cancer

One of rapamycin’s most powerful and exciting benefits is its ability to fight off many forms of cancer.  It has been proven beneficial in lymphoma,  hemangiosarcoma, melanoma, and bladder cancer.  Although we had high hopes for it with bone cancer, a recent metastudy showed that rapamycin did not benefit these patients longer term.  Dang.

Rapamycin can help with chronic kidney disease

Chronic kidney disease worsens as inflammation develops in the kidneys of affected pets.  By reducing inflammation, rapamycin has been proven to not only reduce progression of CKD but also to reduce scarring in the kidneys.  In these ways, rapamycin slows the progression of kidney disease and the nausea it creates.

Rapamycin reduces orthopedic pain and inflammation.

As dogs age… heck, as humans age… we run into increasing aches and pains caused by arthritis in our joints and spines.  Rapamycin has been proven to minimize both pain and progression of osteoarthritis in humans and pets.  There is NOTHING more important to our pets than making them as comfortable as possible in old age… and rapamycin is a safe and effective way to do just that.

We’d love to send rapamycin to your pet.

Rapamycin is a prescription drug, and so we can send it to you either with your local veterinarian’s prescription or after you sign up your pet for a Concierge Consult with us.  Let’s get to work!!