Can taurine, present in energy drinks, slow down aging?

The mice gained less weight, had stronger muscles, were less anxious, and showed multiple improvements at the cellular level, including a reduction in the number of so-called zombie cells, old cells that stop dividing but continue to wreak havoc on nearby tissues‌. Taurine also increased the average lifespan of mice by 12% for females and 10% for males. The supplement had a similar impact on the longevity of the worms.

Researchers also found evidence supporting the anti-aging potential of taurine in people by analyzing two sets of data. One, involving almost 12,000 middle-aged people living in the east of England, showed a link between low levels of taurine and diseases such as obesity, diabetes and hypertension. The other, involving German athletes, found that high-intensity exercise can naturally increase taurine levels, which may explain some of the anti-aging benefits of physical activity.

What taurine does inside the body is still unclear. Experiments with mice and worms point to a role for taurine in maintaining the health of mitochondria, the energy-producing factories inside every cell. But more work is needed, noted Christy Carter, scientific health administrator at the National Institute on Aging. “We don’t know how it works,” she said.

Biohackers and longevity researchers probably won’t wait for this scientific insight before adding taurine to their supplement stacks.

“This article is very comprehensive and compelling,” said Nick Engerer, founder of the Longevity Blog, based in Byron Bay, Australia. “That makes taurine a major contender for something you could try at home for your own longevity.”

But most clinicians and longevity scientists have advised against consuming energy drinks or adding taurine powder to protein shakes until more well-controlled human data becomes available. “I’m constantly telling people, hold the fire until we do the clinical trials,” said Dr. James Kirkland, a Mayo Clinic geriatrician who leads anti-aging studies with other compounds.

David Sinclair, a longevity researcher at Harvard Medical School, is more open to self-experimentation outside of a trial protocol. On his podcast and in his 2019 book he regularly talks about its own cocktail of anti-aging supplements.