Scientists have long tried to find out whether popular taurine slows down aging.

There is evidence that nutrient levels found in meat and shellfish have decreased after middle age, meaning taurine may be considered a marker of healthy aging. An international study in 2023 confirmed that taurine decreases with age, and then showed that taurine supplements can slow down the aging process in several animals.

Now, a new study published in science on Thursday found that taurine levels did not decline with age, but did not change throughout adult life, and even increased in some older people.

It seems paradoxically suggests that taurine measurements are not an indicator of life span and raise questions about its use as an anti-aging supplement. The discovery even surprised the authors of the new study after it was expected to find higher levels of taurine in the blood that are protected from inflammation or some chronic diseases.

"We did this study to confirm what we did for the first time," Dr. Luigi Ferrucci, director of science at the National Institute of Aging, said in a press conference. "Our purpose is not to actually find the exact same connection, but to find a reinforcement."

After their research was completed, there was “a big difference.” “A deeper analysis of this difference is needed, as this may reveal some important mechanisms and proceed with aging.”

The new findings do not rule out the possibility that supplemental taurine can improve the health of some people.

Vijay Yadav, co-author of the early study and co-author of the Rutgers New Jersey Medical School Health Life Program, said the new data are crucial to understanding how taurine affects the aging process because it suggests that it relates to where the underlying data is collected.

He said one of the biological databases that analyzed his study came from a group of people in Finland, and one of the main sources of data for the new study was residents of Baltimore, where the population is genetically diverse.

“This shows to me that the taurine values ​​and data from different genetic backgrounds or populations of different races cannot be aggregated to explain the results,” he said. “It just means we need to define variables better, and genetic background is undoubtedly important.” Others may include whether one is fasting or eating recently.

Yadav said the facts may be similar to what scientists are trying to understand the relationship between blood sugar and diabetes. For example, if samples are collected from people who have fasted or have eaten, there is no idea that something will be made.

The human body can make small amounts of taurine, although people get it mainly from food. Shellfish, dark chicken and turkey contain the highest levels of taurine. Other meats have a proper amount of taurine. A small amount of amino acids in dairy products.

To shed light on whether taurine supplements improve health and delay bioaging, Yadav and his colleagues are currently conducting a double-blind, randomized placebo-controlled trial.

Dr. Peter Abadir, an geriatric expert and associate professor of medicine at Johns Hopkins University, said the two papers are a great example of how science works. Although the findings are very different, “this does not mean that one is right and the other is wrong,” he added.

“The information on these two papers is that we need more research,” said Abadir, who was not involved.