When you wake up on a Saturday or Sunday morning, a double-dose of Ibuprofen capsules can feel like a lifesaver. Now, the latest research has hinted that this could quite literally be the case. Last year, scientists at the Texas A&M University in the US carried out tests with the popular painkiller, and found that it extends the average lifespan of flies and worms by their equivalents of 12 human years, and kept them healthier for longer. But don't start crushing Ibuprofen up and sprinkling it on your daily porridge or into your red wine just yet. Ibuprofen taken in large doses can cause gastrointestinal bleeding, and it's far too soon to say whether its life-extending effects on flies and microscopic worms can be applied to humans. Mammals are far more complex organisms, and while the scientists carrying out the tests have called the results promising, the research is still at a very early stage. The study concluded that a possible reason for the life-boosting effects of Ibuprofen is that it increases yeast cells' ability to import tryptophan, an amino acid that's crucial to producing protein in the body. Ibuprofen has also been found to have protective effects against Alzheimer's Disease, but the exact risk-benefit trade-off is still being investigated. For now, you're better off saving ibuprofen for those life-extending red wine hangovers...
Gamer, Researcher of strange things.
I'm a writer-editor hybrid whose writings on video games, technology and movies can be found across the internet. I've even ventured into the realm of current affairs on occasion but, unable to face reality, have retreated into expatiating on things on screens instead.
