Laxogenin After 40

After 40, many people look for “something extra” to preserve muscle and strength. Laxogenin is marketed as a safe plant-based option. Our editorial team examined what changes in the body with age, whether there are data for laxogenin in this group, and which risks become more important over the years.

What changes after 40

After the fourth decade, the body gradually changes the rules of the game. Muscle mass and strength begin to decline, and although in active people this process is slow, without training it accelerates over the years. In old age, the extreme expression of these changes is called sarcopenia — a condition for which there are separate European diagnostic criteria (Cruz-Jentoft et al., 2019).

At the same time, the sensitivity of muscles to anabolic signals — dietary protein and load — decreases. This phenomenon is called anabolic resistance. In practice it means that a person aged 45–50 needs a little more protein per meal and more thoughtful training to get the same response as at 25.

In men, testosterone levels decline gradually with age; in women after 40, perimenopause approaches with fluctuations in estrogen. These hormonal changes affect body composition, recovery, and sleep — and make people in this age group especially receptive to advertising for “anabolic” supplements.

In this logic, laxogenin is presented as a “gentle helper” that supposedly compensates for age-related losses without interfering with hormones. Our editorial team examined how well-founded this promise is and what nuances specifically apply to an older audience.

Are there data for older people

The short answer is “no.” There are practically no clinical studies of laxogenin in humans of any age in the peer-reviewed literature. All of the manufacturers’ reasoning rests on the work of Esposito et al. (2011), which studied a different brassinosteroid and in young rats.

Extrapolation from animals to humans is always unreliable, and from young animals to middle-aged and older humans doubly so. Age-related anabolic resistance, changes in microcirculation in the muscles, comorbidities — all these factors are not accounted for in experimental models.

It is also important that in people over 40 there is a much higher “noise” in the self-assessment of an effect. Improvement in well-being after starting any program — a new diet, training, a sleep regimen — is often attributed to a supplement that was begun at the same time.

So any testimonials like “I’m 50, and laxogenin brought my shape back” should be perceived as stories about a comprehensive change in lifestyle. Without a control group it is impossible to separate the contribution of the supplement from the contribution of training and nutrition.

Risks that increase with age

With age, not only the potential benefit changes but also the risk profile. A person aged 45–60 more often has chronic diseases and takes medications, and therefore the likelihood of undesirable interactions increases.

A separate topic is combination products. Laxogenin is often sold in a mix with other substances, in particular stimulants or extracts of an ambiguous reputation. For a person with high blood pressure or arrhythmia, it is precisely these components that can pose the main threat.

The risk of undeclared impurities does not decrease with age. Analytical studies have detected prohormones and stimulants in supplements (Geyer et al., 2008; Cohen et al., 2014). For a man undergoing evaluation for the prostate, or for a woman in perimenopause, hormonally active impurities are especially undesirable.

Finally, it is worth remembering the “substitution effect”: a person who believes in a supplement may underestimate the need for examination. Fatigue, a drop in strength and libido after 40 is a reason to get tests done, not just to buy capsules.

Evidence-based tools after 40

Fortunately, for preserving and building muscle in middle age there are methods with a powerful evidence base. A meta-analysis by Peterson et al. (2010) confirmed that strength training substantially increases strength in older people, and higher intensity gives a greater effect.

• Strength training 2–3 times a week with a gradual increase in load.
• Sufficient protein with an even distribution between meals.
• Creatine monohydrate as a well-studied supplement that enhances the effect of training (Kreider et al., 2017).
• Regular monitoring of blood pressure, lipids, glucose and, where indicated, the hormonal profile.
• Good sleep and stress management.

The role of protein increases with age: because of anabolic resistance, the body needs a higher single dose to fully stimulate muscle protein synthesis. A meta-analysis by Morton et al. (2018) showed that protein supplements enhance the gain in muscle mass with strength training, although the effect somewhat decreases with age — which makes it all the more important not to neglect nutrition.

Creatine is interesting for an older audience also because it is being studied in the context of preserving muscle function and, possibly, cognitive measures. Its safety profile at standard doses is well described, which sets it favorably apart from laxogenin.

The comparison is obvious: on one side are tools whose effect has been measured in hundreds of studies, on the other a substance for which there is not a single clinical trial in humans.

If you have nonetheless decided to try it

The editorial team does not provide regimens for taking laxogenin, since a scientifically substantiated dose simply does not exist. But a few general safety principles for people over 40 can be formulated.

First, start with a doctor’s consultation, especially if you are taking any medications. Bring the product’s packaging with you: the composition of a combination supplement may turn out to be more important than the name on the front.

Second, choose single-ingredient products with independent certification for the absence of prohibited substances. This does not guarantee efficacy, but it reduces the risk of unpredictable impurities.

Third, record your baseline measures — weight, girths, strength results, blood pressure, and, if possible, basic tests — and soberly assess them after a few weeks. If there are no objective changes, there is no point in continuing. If unusual symptoms appear — palpitations, sleep problems, mood changes, cycle disturbances — use should be stopped.

Editorial conclusions

After 40, the loss of muscle mass and the decline in the anabolic response are real processes, but laxogenin has no proven ability to compensate for them. There are no studies in middle-aged and older people.

Risks, on the contrary, increase with age: more medications, more chronic conditions, a higher cost of possible hormonally active impurities and stimulants in combination products.

The best investment for this age group is strength training, sufficient protein, creatine, and regular examinations. It is precisely these that have a real evidence base.

We also recommend reading our materials “Laxogenin: What It Is and How It Works,” “Who Should Not Take Laxogenin,” and “Laxogenin During Bulking: Does It Make Sense.”

References

1. Cruz-Jentoft AJ, Bahat G, Bauer J, et al. Sarcopenia: revised European consensus on definition and diagnosis. Age Ageing. 2019;48(1):16–31.
2. Esposito D, Rathinasabapathy T, Poulev A, Komarnytsky S, Raskin I. Akt-dependent anabolic activity of natural and synthetic brassinosteroids in rats. FASEB J. 2011;25(10):3708–3719.
3. Peterson MD, Rhea MR, Sen A, Gordon PM. Resistance exercise for muscular strength in older adults: a meta-analysis. Ageing Res Rev. 2010;9(3):226–237.
4. Morton RW, Murphy KT, McKellar SR, et al. A systematic review, meta-analysis and meta-regression of the effect of protein supplementation on resistance training-induced gains in muscle mass and strength in healthy adults. Br J Sports Med. 2018;52(6):376–384.
5. Kreider RB, Kalman DS, Antonio J, et al. International Society of Sports Nutrition position stand: safety and efficacy of creatine supplementation in exercise, sport, and medicine. J Int Soc Sports Nutr. 2017;14:18.
6. Geyer H, Parr MK, Koehler K, et al. Nutritional supplements cross-contaminated and faked with doping substances. J Mass Spectrom. 2008;43(7):892–902.
7. Cohen PA, Maller G, DeSouza R, Neal-Kababick J. Presence of banned drugs in dietary supplements following FDA recalls. JAMA. 2014;312(16):1691–1693.