Buying human growth hormone supplements to combat aging is now a hot trend among middle-aged individuals. They were hoping that these growth hormones would help them prevent or at least slow down the signs of aging. Supplementation of HGH is also becoming popular as a performance enhancing drug for professional athletes and bodybuilders.

This supplement is said to help develop leaner muscles and aid in faster recovery from injuries. Most sports organizations are now banning the use of growth hormones because of its performance enhancing effects just like anabolic steroids.

But health professionals advocating the use of human growth hormones should now think twice. A recent study published in the Science Translational Medicine Journal, revealed that suppressing human growth hormone may also ward off some diseases common to older people. They found out that cancer and diabetes are not prevalent to people with suppressed growth hormones in their body.

This study poses a debate whether supplementation of HGH outweighs the benefits of being cancer and diabetes free. “There are a lot of people giving human growth hormone to fight aging,” Dr. Nir Barzilai told LA Times. “The question is, will you live longer and healthier? I think these studies suggest maybe not,” said Dr. Barzilai, who is a researcher at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York.

While HGH is marketed as a “fountain of youth” drug, there are still some concerns on its efficacy and claims. Animal studies showed opposite results with regards to the amount of < a href="http://www.steroidsources.com/human-growth-hermone.php">human growth hormones in the body. Mice without growth hormones were reported to live longer and they are protected from cancer. Though more evidences are still needed to verify if suppressed human growth hormones in humans can significantly extend their life expectancy.

The researchers headed by Dr. Valter Longo, a cell biologist from the University of Southern California (USC) conducted studies on yeast and mice that lack growth genes. Yeast lived 3 times longer while the mice lived 40% longer. And additional research in collaboration with Ecuadorian endocrinologist Jaime Guevara-Aguirre revealed that suppressed growth hormones in humans prevents them from getting age related diseases.

The group studied the health histories of Ecuadorians with Laron Syndrome. People with this syndrome had a genetic mutation that shuts off receptors to human growth hormone which resulted to stunted growth. The Laron patients had lower amounts of IGF-I or Insulin-like Growth Factor 1. Further, the analysis conducted on blood samples showed lower insulin concentrations and higher insulin sensitivity. The subjects were also protected from DNA damage.

Drug companies are now into clinical trials to know whether the IGF-1 can be effectively used to treat cancer. The researchers are also planning to conduct further studies on the use of HGH in patients undergoing chemotherapy.

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