The Benefits of Urolithin A for Healthy Aging

By Dr. J.E. Williams | | Reading Time: 3 minutes

Urolithin A is a super-supplement with many essential health benefits. It helps prevent muscle atrophy and protects against many age-related chronic diseases, including heart disease and Parkinson’s Disease. In this article, I focus on its ability to prevent and reverse muscle loss during aging.

What Is Urolithin A?

Urolithin A (UA) is a natural postbiotic compound made in the gut microbiome from polyphenol foods, including pomegranate, berries, and walnuts. It’s been known by scientists for over 40 years but only recently gained well-deserved attention for its anti-aging properties. PubMed lists 599 scientific studies on urolithins. UA improves the health and function of cells by enhancing mitochondrial function. It also has anti-inflammatory effects.

Urolithin A - Picture1

UA Benefits for Healthy Aging:

  • Improves mitochondrial function so you have more energy.
  • Prevents and restores muscle loss to resist the tissue effects of aging.
  • It improves muscle strength, so your exercise workouts are more effective.

What’s the Best Supplement Form of UA?

Swiss scientists discovered UA forty years ago. UA is just one of 13 urolithins beneficial to human health. MitopureÒ is the highly purified form of urolithin-A used as a nutritional supplement.

Safety: UA is considered safe and non-toxic, even at higher doses. And it can be taken continuously over a long period of time. However, I recommend taking 1-2 days off per week for a margin of safety when taking high doses of UA.

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Effective Dosing:

  • General health supportive supplementation – 250 mg daily
  • Healthy aging supplementation – 500 mg (250 mg twice daily)
  • To restore muscle loss and improve strength – 1,000 mg daily (500 mg twice daily)
  • Optimal performance during aging – 2000 mg daily (1000 mg twice daily)
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Dr. Williams’ UA Recommendations:

For general wellness and healthy aging, I prescribe RENUAL. This supplement contains Mitopure UA 250 mg per 2 capsules. For higher doses, choose MITOPURE 500 mg per 2 capsules. For optimal benefits take 1000 mg twice daily.

Summary

If you eat plenty of fresh vegetables, fruits, berries, and nuts and drink pomegranate juice, your gut microbiome will make urolithin A. However, if you have gut inflammation or you’re over 65 years old and just beginning an antiaging program, you’ll benefit by adding urolithin A. If you have muscle decline and have difficulty building muscle mass, enhance muscle health by taking higher doses. Remember, improvement doesn’t happen overnight. But with consistent supplementation, supported by enough protein intake, you’ll see muscle size, tone, and strength improvement within a few months.

References

D’Amico D, Andreux PA, Valdés P, Singh A, Rinsch C, Auwerx J. Impact of the Natural Compound Urolithin A on Health, Disease, and Aging. Trends Mol Med. 2021 Jul;27(7):687-699. Epub 2021 May 21. PMID: 34030963. http://doi:10.1016/j.molmed.2021.04.009

García-Villalba R, Giménez-Bastida JA, Cortés-Martín A, Ávila-Gálvez MÁ, Tomás-Barberán FA, Selma MV, Espín JC, González-Sarrías A. Urolithins: a Comprehensive Update on their Metabolism, Bioactivity, and Associated Gut Microbiota. Mol Nutr Food Res. 2022 Nov;66(21):e2101019. https://doi:10.1002/mnfr.2021.01.019           

Liu S, D’Amico D, Shankland E, et al. Effect of Urolithin A Supplementation on Muscle Endurance and Mitochondrial Health in Older Adults: A Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA Netw Open. 2022;5(1):e2144279. http://doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2021.44279

Singh, A., Andreux, P. A., Dunngalvin, G., Kern, T., Auwerx, J., Aebischer, P., & Rinsch, C. (2022). Direct supplementation with Urolithin A overcomes limitations of dietary exposure and gut microbiome variability in healthy adults to achieve consistent levels across the population. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 76(2), 297-308. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41430-021-00950-1

Singh, A., Andreux, P. A., Fouassier, A. M., Blanco-Bose, W., Evans, M., Aebischer, P., Auwerx, J., & Rinsch, C. (2022). Urolithin A improves muscle strength, exercise performance, and biomarkers of mitochondrial health in a randomized trial in middle-aged adults. Cell Reports Medicine, 3(5). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.xcrm.2022.100633 Wojciechowska, O., & Kujawska, M. (2023). Urolithin A in Health and Diseases: Prospects for Parkinson’s Disease Management. Antioxidants, 12(7), 1479. https://doi.org/10.3390/antiox12071479