Welcome to Everyday Wellness Podcast. I'm your host, Nurse Practitioner Cynthia Thurlow. This podcast is designed to educate, empower, and inspire you to achieve your health and wellness goals. My goal and intent is to provide you with the best content and conversations from leaders in the health and wellness industry each week and impact over a million lives. This is the start of a new Thursday series called The Midlife Minute that is really designed to address listeners' questions in a little bit longer length of time and or deeper dive into topics. Ideally, we're going to keep these podcasts under 20 minutes. Occasionally we make over to 30, but I'm trying to reinforce some key concepts and ensure that I'm addressing listeners' questions in a way that's really helpful. The questions that I will be addressing topics are going to be items that I'm being asked over and over and over again. I hope you enjoy this series. Please share with your friends. As you know, you can always send your questions to support at synthyathurlow.com. I appreciate each and every listener. Hi, this is Cynthia Thurlow. This is one of those short and sweet listeners' questions that I'm going to answer in long format here on YouTube. Today it is all about urolithin-a. Questions came in from, hey, Alexis, is urolithin-a a legit help for mitochondrial improvement or is it just a fad supplement? As well as Mia, I am particular with supplements, our timeline gummies legit. Here are my responses to these two questions which are speaking about urolithin-a, which is a signaling molecule. It's also a postbiotic, meaning that our gut bacteria, when we consume specific types of polyphenols, polyphenols are brightly pigmented fruits and vegetables. In this case, the particular type that you can find urolithin-a are in strawberries and pomegranates, but you have to eat a lot. The most significant part of this is about 30 to 40% of us don't make enough urolithin-a. It has a direct effect on the changes that are going on in the gut microbiome as we are navigating perimenopause and amenopause. Check out my book, The Menopause Gut, where I talk all about signaling molecules as well as many other aspects of supporting our bodies in perimenopause and beyond. There's a lot of reasons why I think urolithin-a is one of those foundational supplements along with creatine monohydrate and magnesium and many others that you hear me talk about on the podcast or on social media with some frequency. We know as we get older, we are more likely to have dysfunctional mitochondria. Mitochondria are the powerhouses of our cells, our organelles in particular, and so it's less common to see healthy mitochondria as we get older, especially if we are not doing all the lifestyle things to take care of our health. We know that we're also more likely to experience sarcopenia, which is this muscle loss with aging that really accelerates after the age of 40. This is why strength training is so important. And with these changes and alterations in the loss of muscle mass, we are more likely to also see more visceral fat accumulation. And this is also a byproduct of some of the hormonal fluctuations that we see at this time as well. We're more likely to experience more inflammation, more oxidative stress, and significant gut microbiome shifts. You're going to see me looking at my paper because I'm going to be referencing some research as I'm having this discussion. So there's multiple things that impact why I think your lithin A is such an important signaling molecule to end postbiotic to support in our bodies. So we know that your lithin A actually enhances mitochondrial function. It activates something called mitophagy, which is this recycling process of disease, disorder, mitochondria, and a double-blind placebo-controlled trial of older adults, 500 to 1000 milligrams a day of your lithin A for four months, significantly improved mitochondrial gene expression in muscle biopsies, and increased endurance performance. I will link all these resources so you can take a look at these as well. Mitochondrial dysfunction can also be tied into declines in estrogen, which is what's happening as we are navigating the perimenopause to menopause transition. Sometimes we can see increases up to 20 to 30 percent of increases in estrogen in perimenopause, which can be a byproduct of something called a loop cycle, which is where we get a prolonged luteal phase without the benefit of ovulation. We know that when estrogen drops, mitochondrial decline also declines. And so this can contribute to energy issues, metabolic and flexibility. And we know that your lithin A can be part of repairing these dysfunctional mitochondria along with lifestyle and hormone replacement therapy. If you're in perimenopause or menopause and are feeling more fatigued, dizzy, lightheaded, struggling with headaches, or noticing your workouts feel harder than they used to, electrolytes may be part of the missing piece. As estrogen declines, we lose some of the fluid regulating and vascular protective effects that hormones once provided. That means blood pressure regulation can shift, cortisol can run higher, and many women become more sensitive to dehydration, especially if you're strength training, walking more, intermittent fasting, or reducing processed foods. That's why I love Element. It is my favorite electrolyte formulation, and I've exclusively used their products for the past six years. Element contains a science-backed ratio of sodium, potassium, and magnesium without sugar. Artificial ingredients are unnecessary fillers. It supports hydration at a cellular level, helps reduce muscle cramps, improves energy, as well as recovery, and can even support better stress resilience. This is particularly helpful in midlife when we're prioritizing metabolic health and muscle preservation. I personally use Element throughout the day, and it's become a staple in my routine as well as my household. If you'd like to try it, go to drinkelement.com slash Cynthia to receive a free sample pack with any purchase. Stay hydrated, stay strong, especially in midlife. If you're in your 40s and 50s and feel like your body suddenly stopped responding the way that it used to, you're not imagining it. Bloating, waking, sleep disruptions, food sensitivities, and unpredictable energy are incredibly common in perimenopause and menopause. But here's what most people aren't told. Your gut microbiome is changing right alongside your hormones, and those changes can influence everything from how you store fat to how well you sleep to how your body processes estrogen. That's exactly why I wrote my new book, The Menopause Gut. In this book, I walk you through the science of how the microbiome, metabolism, immune system, and hormones are all connected during midlife. But most importantly, I give you practical, realistic strategies you can start using right away without extreme diets or complicated protocols. You'll learn why the same diet that worked in your 30s may not work now, how your gut influences hot flashes, mood, and weight, the truth about fiber, protein, and blood sugar in midlife, and the daily habits that help your body feel safe, stable, and resilient again. If you're tired of blaming yourself for changes that are actually biological, this book will help you understand what's really happening and what to do about it. You can pre-order The Menopause Gut wherever books are sold, and when you do, be sure to check out the special pre-order bonuses I've put together for you. Again, you can go to www.synthiathorlo.com. You'll click on the banner. It'll take you to multiple options for where you can order The Menopause Gut in pre-sale. What does comfort that carries you from morning to night feel like? This March, Cozy Earth crafts every piece with care from soft, supportive socks for your steps through the day to breathable comforters that help you rest deeply at night. And let's be clear, in perimenopause and menopause, our sleep is precious. Every detail with Cozy Earth is intentional, so your everyday feels quietly elevated. Their designs focus on comfort in the details because small choices make a lasting difference. And what I always love about Cozy Earth is that these are items that will last a long time. They're high quality, they feel luxurious, they feel amazing next to your skin. 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Again, that's CozyEarth.com and use my code SYNTHIA for up to 20% off. Experience the craft behind the comfort and make every day feel intentional. We know that Uralithin A can be important for muscle support as well as exercise and in randomized controlled trial and cell study. Middle-aged adults taking 500 to 1000 milligrams a day of Uralithin A improved leg strength, as well as a grip test and a six-minute walk test and muscle endurance versus placebo. We know that Uralithin A promotes better mitochondrial density and energy output in muscle cells. So it's going to help with strength. If you follow me, you know that I've talked a lot about how muscle strength harkens the beginning of the loss of muscle. So before you even lose the muscle, you're losing muscle strength. This is why I don't let anyone in my house open up jars for me or help me lift things. I try to do everything myself because it's so important to maintain strength. We know that combating sarcopenia is something that we talk about a lot, not only on the podcast, but across social media, how important it is to maintain muscle mass and our ability to continuously be challenging those muscles, activating the satellite cells on the muscles themselves. Very, very important. We know that utilizing Uralithin A or consuming it can improve inflammation and oxidative stress. Again, it goes back to estrogen. As we are losing estrogen, we are more likely to experience more inflammation. Uralithin A can help reduce specific markers like interleukin six, tumor nycrosis factor, and can upregulate specific pathways like NERF2. In preclinical and human translational studies, Uralithin A supplementation reduced CRP, which is a non-specific marker of inflammation, and improved mitochondrial antioxidant capacity. The whole concept of immunosynescence, which is aging of the immune system, infelimaging, that is really what we're speaking to here, and can help improve some of those symptoms that we experience in middle age. We know that Uralithin A also improves gut health and the barrier. As a postbiotic, Uralithin A actually strengthens the intestinal lining. I've talked about how the small intestine is just one cell layer thick. It is easy to damage this lining and improves tight junction integrity and reduces endotoxin leakage. If we consume something, maybe a lipopolysaccharide, and we are exposed to food poisoning as an example, those endotoxins can get into our bloodstream and can trigger some of the symptoms we experience when we have bad food poisoning, which I'm sure everyone watching this video has experienced once or twice. We know that it indirectly supports specific microbes like foundational keystone species like acrimoncia. I've done a whole podcast devoted to this with Dr. Colleen Cutliff. Highly recommended if you want to learn more about this keystone bacteria, but we know acrimoncia is very important for endogenous GLP1 production. It's very important and tied into short chain fatty acid production. Very important for production of mucus. Mucus is important with that small intestinal layer. Mucus is one of these things that we think of as being gross, but it's very important for the functionality in our bodies. Lastly, urolithinate may actually support brain health and cognition. We know that there's a one research article I was looking at where it said, in animal and emerging human data, urolithinate improves neuronal mitochondrial turnover and endothelial function, potentially lowering cardiovascular risk and enhancing cognitive resilience. That is an animal study. That is not yet done in human studies, but we could extrapolate that there might be benefits beyond what I've already referred to. Now, in terms of practical applications, I take 500 milligrams a day. My husband takes 1000. I've been very transparent about how he was on six months of essentially chemotherapy for tuberculosis. If you've heard much about tuberculosis, it is hard to get. It's hard to kill. The drugs are very toxic. He's been taking a gram a day for well over seven months. Probably will take that for a while. The other thing to think about is best practices. You can take it with food. You can take it by itself. If you take it with healthy fats, it'll help slow the absorption. I think that it's not just the supplement. We have to do the lifestyle piece, too. Making sure you're lifting weights, you're eating enough protein, you're adding in things like creatine monohydrate can all be very beneficial. Very well tolerated. You can take it along with hormone replacement therapy, other types of peptides, and other longevity supplements. Kind of a summary. Number one, increases strength and endurance with muscle through mitophagy and mitochondrial biogenesis. It helps our metabolic health by improving insulin sensitivity, by activating those pathways like NERF2. It fortifies the gut barrier and reduces inflammation. Specifically, they're those postbiotic short chain fatty acid signaling. Then the brain, it could improve mitochondrial turnover. Again, that was based on animal studies. Bottom line, it is helpful for our mitochondria. It's also helpful for the microbiome. Obviously, my favorite product is timeline nutrition. We'll put the link below where you can get 10% off with code SYNTHIA. Keep your questions coming. I'm loving these, and I'd love to hear what you would like to learn about more next. If you love this podcast episode, please leave a rating and review, subscribe, and tell a friend.
