Young blood: is it worth it?
Transfusion of blood for the sake of rejuvenation can cause more harm than good
Dmitry Mazalevsky, Naked Science
A blood transfusion from a young donor will not help you live longer, but on the contrary, it can bring you closer to death. This is the conclusion reached by New York University professor Marc Siegel in his article. The doctor warns that people who receive transfusions of "young blood" as a so-called anti-aging therapy need to be aware of the many health risks associated with this, including the possibility that the body may simply not perceive blood.
In January, the American startup Ambrosia Medical, founded by Jesse Karmazin, a graduate of Stanford University Medical School, offered a service to combat aging by transfusing someone else's plasma. The company has opened five clinics in the United States, where those who wish can receive blood transfusions from donors aged from 16 to 25 years. The cost of the service will be eight thousand dollars per liter of blood and 12 thousand for two. Despite the fact that there are no scientific studies yet confirming the idea that "young blood" it has a rejuvenating effect on the body, the company managed to build a business around, as Siegel said, "an unsubstantiated promise to slow down the aging process." In fact, studies have not shown any benefit in terms of the end result or survival when fresher red blood cells (so in the text, but transfuse purified plasma from cells – VM) entered the body.
Ambrosia Medical announced long-term clinical trials of its system, in which more than 150 people aged 35 to 92 years received one and a half liters of plasma from donors aged 16 to 25 years. According to Dr. David Wright, before and after the transfusion, doctors measured the level of hemoglobin, leptin and other biomarkers in the test participants. The results of the study have not yet been published, but Karmazin claims that "they can be called truly positive." Now there are more than a hundred people on the waiting list for blood transfusion.
According to the scientist, Ambrosia not only actually deceives people by earning money from them, but can also cause harm to health by its actions. Treatment is mainly aimed at the older generation, and Segal notes that blood transfusion is a risky procedure that can lead to iron saturation, infections, allergic reactions, and even breathing difficulties. In addition, it can cause problems with immunity if the recipient's body rejects the donated blood.
As a result, according to Segal, people should think carefully before agreeing to a transfusion of "young blood". No matter how attractive this process may seem, you let in the specific blood bodies of another person, and this, according to the professor, is not the same as filling the gas tank of a car.
According to the American Red Cross, a donor can be a person at least 17 years old (in some states, with the consent of parents – at least 16). In fact, most of the transfused blood comes from elderly donors, just over 12 percent from people aged 30, and only 10 percent from people aged 23 to 29. According to AABB (American Association of Blood Banks), most of the blood is donated by people over 40 years old. In Russia, a person over the age of 18 who has no contraindications to donation and weighs more than 50 kilograms can become a donor.
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