Last week, supermodel and celebrity dietician Maye Musk appeared at The Times Square Edition hotel in New York City, clad in a pomegranate-themed red and white outfit, for an event promoting Swiss life sciences company Amazentis’ new product, an anti-aging supplement called Mitopure, sold under the company’s Time-line Nutrition brand.
“I am a dietician, so whenever I get asked to endorse dietary supplements I always look at the science first. Time-line Nutrition is backed by 10 years of research and clinical
studies showing that it really works,” Musk told Observer across a table covered in sample packets of Time-line powder and promo pamphlets brimming with words that I would not recognize without referring to a science dictionary.
The secret ingredient of Time-line Nutrition’s Mitopure powder is its namesake proprietary compound. Mitopure is a highly purified form of Urolithin A, a metabolic molecule that scientists find helps activate a cellular renewal process called mitophagy, which clears defective mitochondria in our cells to make room for healthy ones.
Let’s rewind to 10th grade biology class for a second: Mitochondria are tiny structures in our cells that regulate the supply of energy, or adenosine triphosphate (ATP), to body cells. The more mitochondria you have in your cells, the more ATP your body is able to produce. Therefore, mitochondrial health is vital to organ and muscle function.
“Mitochondria is like the power house to our cells. It produces all the ATP or energy to our cells,” explained Chris Rinsch, cofounder and CEO of Amazentis. “When they wear out, they need to be recycled. Otherwise our cells would die. There’s a constant renewal process in our cells.”
As we age, our mitochondria get damaged and the mitophagy process slows down. Those who exercise rigorously or restrict calorie intake tend to have more mitochondria in their body. The same effect can be achieved with the help of Urolithin A, which can be created by human gut bacteria after consuming pomegranate and certain nuts and berries. The problem, though, is that only 40 percent of people have the right gut bacteria to naturally produce beneficial levels of Urolithin A, studies have shown.
“What you eat is important. But it’s not just what you eat, it’s how you process what you eat, which is kind of a complex story to tell,” Rinsch told Observer.
Mitopure solves this problem by bypassing the complexities of microbiome in our digestive system and unlocking Urolithin A for everyone, including those without the right bacteria to produce it from diet. Clinical studies have shown that a daily intake of 500 micrograms of Mitopure delivers six times more Urolithin A than a glass of pomegranate juice—assuming you can naturally produce it.
Amazentis’ clinical trials so far have focused only on muscle health. Studies have shown that Mitopure helps boost strength and endurance in leg and hand muscles after about four months.
Mitopure is recognized by the FDA as a safe ingredient under the agency’s GRAS (Generally Recognized As Safe) program. Time-line comes in the form of powder and softgels. The powder can be mixed into common breakfast items such as yogurt, smoothies and oatmeal.
“From the research, if I had to choose a glass of pomegranate juice or Mitopure, I would choose Mitopure as it is a faster way to add the health benefits of pomegranate to my daily routine,” Musk said.
Leave a Reply