What is it?

If you have never heard of this protein, don’t feel bad, neither did I until a few weeks ago. Turns out it is a protein involved in skin aging. It is more well known for its role in Hutchinson-Gilford progeria syndrome (a rare disorder that causes rapid aging of children). I became interested in this due to an advertisement I saw for a cream developed by a “world renowned” dermatologist. The cream is supposed to fix the problem and reduce skin wrinkles. I was skeptical.

Progerin is an abnormal protein, a mutant of Lamin A. Lamin A is a biomarker of the aging process, found mostly in skin fibroblasts and reticular layers of terminally differentiated keratinocytes (dead cells on the outermost layer of the skin). Normal aging along with sun damage cause an increase in progerin. The basic process is as progerin increases in the cell the cell becomes unstable, and this results in wrinkled skin. One article referred to it as “impaired repair”. The cells just sit there instead of sloughing off.
My next question was, is it possible to stop the build up of progerin, or maybe even get rid of it from our skin? Could a cream really work? This is what I found.

• Exercise reduces inflammation. It may help to reduce progerin buildup.
• Eat healthy. Fruit and vegetables help with providing antioxidants. That may protect from cell damage. In addition, fermented foods also may help.
• No smoking
• Sleep is important for cell repair
• Supplements like vitamin C, CoQ 10 and green tea all provide antioxidants.
• Skin care. Protection from the sun, vitamin C serum, and moisturizer all may help to boost collagen which in turn will protect the skin from free radicals.
• Vitamin D. specifically Calcitriol, is another supplement that has been shown to reduce progerins in the skin.
• Reduce salt intake. There was no explanation for this that I was able to find.

There are progerin blockers (medications); however, they have limited effectiveness and more long-term data for safety and efficacy are needed.
There are also ongoing studies for the development of progerin blockers that hope to improve treatment.

So, is there a cream that can fix this problem? There are many that claim that they can. Maybe they can help, but without incorporating the things mentioned above I doubt that they can be of much value. The reason I say this is because most creams cannot penetrate the skin deep enough to really make changes. They make the skin look good and feel good, but it really hasn’t changed inside.

If you decide to add supplements to help your skin, make sure you get what you pay for. As always, I recommend pharmaceutical grade vitamins and supplements. These are only available from a health care provider. I will place a link at the bottom of this page for your convenience.

Vitamin C, D, CoQ 10, and green tea supplements are all available from Xymogen, a company I trust. These products are made here in the USA and are certified to have in them what they say they do. Please check with your provider before starting any vitamins or supplements.

http://www.wholescripts.com/register/healthrenew2-thomas
For questions or comments, I can be contacted
SupplementsScribblesmz@outlook.com
I may receive a small commission if you purchase from Xymogen. This will not increase your cost.

#muchmorethanjustvitamins