Hi, my name is Anthony Loera,
I am a lifetime member of Longecity.
This is just a quick post regarding my personal experience with Plasma Apheresis.
This is not medical advice, and I am just relating my personal experience. Don't try this if
you have any medical conditions. I am a pretty healthy guy with no ailments:
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For those wondering what this is, here are the links below:
Old plasma dilution reduces human biological age: a clinical study
https://pubmed.ncbi....h.gov/35999337/
The video of Conboy explaining the study to the UCLA Gerontology Group.
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Donating blood and living longer?
I first heard about blood donations and longevity many years ago. But decided against it as giving whole blood was not appealing to me, and it took many weeks to be able to donate again. https://sciencenordi...-longer/1425568
The Irina Conboy study:
Recently in August, I heard about the recent Conboy human study. I believed it was much more appropriate for me as all the red blood cells were given back to me, and only plasma was donated. But I could not find a location to take 2-2.5 liters of plasma in one shot here in Florida. So I started to consider other avenues and wondered if regular plasma donations would provide an avenue to do this.
After calling around a bit, I found a plasma donation center. I verified that they made a plasma donation by Apheresis. The Conboy study replaced 2-2.5 liters once a month. But here in Florida, I found that there were limits to the amount of plasma that you could donate. For example, I (at close to 200 lbs) had a limit of 880ml per donation. So I could not do it all in one shot.
I decided to do it anyway, I figured there was no harm, and my donation might help someone.
My first visit:
The first visit took about 3 hours. Mainly because they had to vet you, give you a physical, and ask you a dozen questions (Do you smoke, do you take drugs, have you had unprotected sex, do you have AIDS, have you gotten blood transfusions in the '70s... ), watch a video that explained Apheresis, possible complications. Yes, It was pretty thorough. They check your vitals and blood pressure, prick your finger, check your protein levels, and a couple of other things. Take your fingerprint electronically... It did feel kind of odd to provide so much info since I was a donor.
The process of Plasma Apheresis:
Finally, they sat me down. Asked me some questions to make sure they had the right "Anthony", then they hooked me up with a pressure sleeve and inserted the needle.
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If you have ever experienced donating blood, it is pretty similar. They put a blood pressure sleeve on, and when it's tight on your arm, you squeeze a ball, and the blood flows out into the plastic lines and into the Apheresis machine. The machine would then spin the blood and extract the plasma into a plastic-sealed container. Later, when the blood pressure sleeve relaxed, you would relax (no more squeezing the ball), and the red blood cells would be returned through the same lines back into your arm. This process happened around four times. Plasma would be taken, leaving your red blood cells... which would then be returned to you with some saline mixture.
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After the donation, they verify your name again and then tell you the date when you can come back and donate again. To my surprise, they told me to come back in three (3) days. Apparently, you can donate every few days in Florida.
Total visits and donations:
I went to the sessions to donate 6 times from September 11, 2022, to October 12, 2022.
That comes out to approximately 5.28 liters of plasma I donated in a month. That is double the amount in the Conboy study.
So do I feel any better?
I think I felt better, but I could not really measure it. The only blood tests I had done recently were a blood test for insurance purposes around September 14 or 15, and by looking at it, everything was pretty much normal. I thought it would be silly to test myself again and find I was "normal" again.
I am 51 and about 200lbs.
The blood test here seems pretty normal to me:
Graphic_clinic_report_Redacted (1).pdf 364.3KB
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I then realized I did an online IQ test back in August before thinking about doing the Plasma Dilution. I don't think online IQ tests are very accurate, but a Ph.D. friend did send me the link to try it out. At the time, I did try this limited IQ test back in August before reading about the latest Conboy study.
Here are the results of that IQ test I took on August 19, 2022:
Full Scale IQ Test Results - 08192022 (1).pdf 216.47KB
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I decided to do the IQ test again a couple of days after my last donation.
Here are the October 14, 2022 results, which show an improvement:
Full Scale IQ Test Results-10142022 (1).pdf 216.66KB
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I am not going to say that my IQ increased, as I believe online tests are usually pretty inaccurate, to say the least, but it did provide a metric that seemed to show improvement in memory. I do feel mentally clear, and I think, overall, it was a good experience for me. Even the online IQ test states it was made a little different because it was intended for engagement and research. You can try the IQ test yourself here, but note.. it should not be used as a guarantee of the accuracy as it is just for research and educational use only: https://openpsychome...org/tests/FSIQ/
Will I do it again?
Yes, I think I will consider doing this every 2-3 months. It does take some time to visit the Plasma donation center, get it done and drive back to my home, but I think I can manage to do it 1-2 times a week until I get to my total of 6 donations once more.
What was my daily regimen before, during, and after plasma?
- 2000 mg of RevGenetics Advanced NMN 1000
- 1000 mg of RevGenetics x500 or Nitro Synergy
- 3 Capsules of RevGenetics Stem Cell Pro IV
- 10 capsules RevGenetics Rapymine (50 mg spermidine)
- 2400 mg of Vitamin Shoppe NAC
- 2000 mg of Vitamin Shoppe Taurine
- 1000 mg of Vitamin Shoppe Niacin
- 1 Centrum (Men 50+)
There were a few things I occasionally added, such as attempting a half-day fast, the 277x curcumin, and the Hyperimmune Egg powder, but most of the time, it was the list above. WARNING: If you have never taken flush Niacin... don't start out with 1000 mg. Take 100mg or maybe up to 250 mg. My sister had a very bad reaction with 250mg, and I would not want anyone here copying the amount of Niacin I take without letting you know that you can have a very, VERY bad reaction. I also never take "slow release" Niacin. That stuff can be bad for you, IMHO.
Why are you talking about it?
I am hoping others will try it and provide their experiences. Personally, whether you take supplements or not, I found the Plasma Dilution something easy to do. It seemed to clear my head. It was also very inexpensive since you don't have to pay anyone to donate plasma at many of the plasma centers. The Plasma centers are VERY happy to have donations. All you need is a little time.
If you do try this, take some blood tests (before and after)... and maybe a mental acuity test to see if what I experienced was a fluke or not. Hopefully, this helps people that want to help others...
I personally think this is a win-win for everyone:
Donating Plasma through Apheresis is usually free. It will likely help someone down the line, and if Conboy's human clinical study is any consideration... it seems like it will help keep you healthy to boot.
Cheers!
Anthony Loera
RevGenetics
