About PrimAGE™
PrimAGE is a formulation containing two forms of vitamin B-6: pyridoxamine and pyridoxal-5'-phosphate (P5P). (Ordinary vitamin
B-6 supplements usually consist of another form, called ‘pyridoxine’.) The P5P in our formula slows the body’s conversion
of pyridoxamine to other substances, thereby prolonging its activity.
What we can’t tell you
In the U.S. and some other industrialized countries, government agencies like the U.S. Food and Drug Administration have adopted
censorship as a method for intensifying their control over the supplement industry and its customers. Thus, FDA regulations
prohibit us from telling you that any of our products are effective as medical treatments, even if they are, in fact, effective.
Accordingly, we will limit our discussion of PrimAGE to a brief summary of recent pyridoxamine research, and let you draw
your own conclusions about what medical conditions it may be effective in treating.
Protein damage in aging and diabetes
While it has been known since the 1940s that pyridoxamine is a form of vitamin B-6, it was only recently that its unique and
exciting properties came to light. In 1996 it was announced that pyridoxamine inhibits the formation of ‘Advanced Glycation End-products’ (AGEs).
AGEs are damaged proteins — mainly structural proteins and enzymes — that have been bonded together by certain sugars in such
a way as to impair their normal function. AGEs accumulate in the body as one ages, causing tissues to lose their elasticity and causing enzymes to malfunction. In fact, this accumulation of AGEs is considered
to be one of the principal causes of aging.
Aging, however, is not the only condition in which AGEs play a major role. Diabetes is another. Periods of high blood sugar
(‘hyperglycemia’) are a hallmark of diabetes, and the resulting exposure of tissues to certain sugars (especially glucose)
greatly increases the rate at which AGEs are formed. The accumulation of AGEs may account for much of the tissue damage that
is seen in the diabetic state — including damage to kidneys (nephropathy), nerves (neuropathy), vasculature (atherosclerosis),
and eyes (retinopathy, cataracts).
Pyridoxamine and aging
Since aging is not officially recognized as a disease or medical condition by the FDA, we are free to tell you that pyridoxamine
looks like an excellent agent for suppressing a major cause of aging. Here is the logic involved:
- The accumulation of AGEs correlates with aging.
- AGEs cause some of the symptoms of aging, such as tissue stiffness and loss of function.
- Pyridoxamine inhibits the formation of AGEs.
- Therefore, pyridoxamine is likely to suppress some aspects of aging. Only a decades-long clinical study can demonstrate this
conclusion beyond a shadow of a doubt, but few would be so foolish as to wait decades for such a study to be completed before
going ahead and using pyridoxamine as an anti-aging supplement.
Pyridoxamine and diabetic symptoms
Here are some highlights of recent research into the connection between AGEs, diabetes, and pyridoxamine:
- AGEs play a key role in the damage of tissues by sugars, such as glucose.
- The presence of diabetic complications correlates with elevated serum AGEs.
- Pyridoxamine inhibits the formation of AGEs ex vivo and in diabetic rats. (It is generally assumed that similar inhibition takes place in humans, although no studies have been done to prove it.)
- Pyridoxamine protects against the development of nephropathy (kidney damage), retinopathy (damage to the retina), and neuropathy
(nerve damage) in animal models of diabetes.
- Pyridoxamine slows kidney damage in diabetic patients. (The effects of pyridoxamine on diabetic neuropathy, retinopathy, and cardiovascular damage have not yet been studied in
human clinical trials.)
Conclusion
Are pyridoxamine supplements effective for preventing diabetic complications? We aren’t allowed to tell you, so you should
take a look at some of the references cited here, and then decide for yourself.