Is there any such thing as a wonder drug? Usually, we think that there is no such thing. But, if there is, what is required for a drug to be called a wonder drug?
Given the recent impressive results with Q10 in the Q-SYMBIO clinical trial, do we maybe want to re-think the concept of wonder drug?
“Wonder drug” overused
Now, you are thinking … yeah, yeah, you have heard the term wonder drug too often lately. When Prozac came out, it was regarded as a wonder drug. Then Viagra was considered a wonder drug. And we are promised new wonder drugs for cancer and for diabetes every week, it seems.
What is a wonder drug?
Enough already with the wonder drugs, you are thinking. But, please, bear with me. I want for us to think this through.
How would we define a wonder drug? A wonder drug would have to be a drug that is effective against various disease conditions, isn’t that right? And a wonder drug should be effective in many different demographic categories of people, right? And, obviously, it would have to be safe, don’t you agree?
Q10 a wonder drug?
So, is Q10 a wonder drug? Does Coenzyme Q10Coenzyme Q10 molecules are fat-soluble molecules that are both synthesized in the body and ingested in the diet and in supplements. Coenzyme Q10 is synthesized in the body in the same biological pathway as cholesterol. Bio-synthesis of Coenzyme Q10 begins to decline once humans reach their adult years. The reduced production of Coenzyme Q10 cannot be compensated in any practical... More match up with our definition, do you think? Should we compare?
Demographically, supplementation with Q10 has been shown to be useful with middle-aged and elderly healthy people as well as with patients with heart failureThe Mayo Clinic defines heart failure, also known as congestive heart failure and/or chronic heart failure, as the failure of the heart muscle to pump blood to the body adequately. In other words, heart failure is not a heart attack, and it is not death from heart disease, which its name might seem to imply. Heart failure is a condition... More.
The web-site of the Mayo Clinic indicates that Q10 supplementation is beneficial for the treatment of a wide range of conditions:
Coenzyme Q10Coenzyme Q10 molecules are fat-soluble molecules that are both synthesized in the body and ingested in the diet and in supplements. Coenzyme Q10 is synthesized in the body in the same biological pathway as cholesterol. Bio-synthesis of Coenzyme Q10 begins to decline once humans reach their adult years. The reduced production of Coenzyme Q10 cannot be compensated in any practical... More deficiency, which may occur because of aging, disease, side effects of statin medication, and high CoQ10 use during exercise or training.
CoQ10 for chronic heart failureThe Mayo Clinic defines heart failure, also known as congestive heart failure and/or chronic heart failure, as the failure of the heart muscle to pump blood to the body adequately. In other words, heart failure is not a heart attack, and it is not death from heart disease, which its name might seem to imply. Heart failure is a condition... More, which is well documented by the results of the Q-SYMBIO clinical trialClinical trials are research studies in which various treatments, interventions, or tests are investigated for their safety and efficacy when used to detect, prevent, or treat diseases and medical conditions in patients and healthy volunteers. The gold standard for clinical trials are randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled studies. More and the results of the earlier Morisco clinical trialClinical trials are research studies in which various treatments, interventions, or tests are investigated for their safety and efficacy when used to detect, prevent, or treat diseases and medical conditions in patients and healthy volunteers. The gold standard for clinical trials are randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled studies. More.
CoQ10 for high blood pressure. Important.
CoQ10 for coronary heart disease, especially when the patient is taking statin medication.
CoQ10 and exercise performance because of the way in which the cells produce energy.
Q10 and neuro-degenerative disease conditions. In theory, supplementation with Q10 should be beneficial in treating patients with neuro-degenerative diseasesNeuro-degenerative diseases are diseases resulting from the degeneration of the nerve cells (also called neurons). Alzheimer’s disease, Huntington’s disease, and Parkinson’s disease are the names of well-known neuro-degenerative diseases. Coenzyme Q10 supplementation has received attention for its potentially preventive and/or therapeutic role in the neuro-degenerative diseases, especially with respect to Coenzyme Q10 antioxidant role in protecting the mitochondria and the... More. The clinical trials that have been carried out in patients with Parkinson’s disease, Huntington’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, Friedreich’s ataxia, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis have, admittedly, had inconclusive findings.
But Q10 is very well tolerated with no adverse effects; consequently, it is, potentially, a valuable therapy to try with patients suffering from the various neuro-degenerative diseasesNeuro-degenerative diseases are diseases resulting from the degeneration of the nerve cells (also called neurons). Alzheimer’s disease, Huntington’s disease, and Parkinson’s disease are the names of well-known neuro-degenerative diseases. Coenzyme Q10 supplementation has received attention for its potentially preventive and/or therapeutic role in the neuro-degenerative diseases, especially with respect to Coenzyme Q10 antioxidant role in protecting the mitochondria and the... More.
Q10 safety
Q10 has a 30-year-long proven record of safety that is mostly unparalleled among the pharmaceutical preparations.
Why look at Q10 with wonder?
Q10 fulfills two vital functions in humans. It is essential for adequate energy production in the cells, and it is absolutely necessary for antioxidantAntioxidants are substances that protect the cells and lipoproteins against the harmful effects of free radicals. They are substances that prevent the oxidation of other molecules and compounds. There are two broad categories of antioxidants: enzymatic and non-enzymatic. Non-enzymatic antioxidants are substances like Coenzyme Q10, vitamin C, vitamin E, glutathione, and various carotenoids. Prominent enzymatic antioxidants include catalase, glutathione peroxidase,... More protection against the damage caused by oxidative stress in the cells.
We can honestly say, can we not, that supplementation with Q10 is advisable for practically everyone over the age of 40-45 years of age, whether healthy or ill? And can we say too that there is a growing list of disease conditions in which Q10 supplementation with an absorbable soft-gel preparation can improve quality of life and longevity?
Q10 works with the body
Best of all, as Dr. Svend Aage Mortensen, a cardiologist in the Heart Centre at the University of Copenhagen Hospital, puts it: treatment with Q10 is a treatment that works to enhance the body’s natural protective functions. Other standard treatment regimens generally work to inhibit the body in one or another function, e.g. statinsStatins are a class of medications that effectively block the body’s synthesis of cholesterol. In so doing, statins also block the body’s synthesis of Coenzyme Q10. More work by inhibiting the action of the HMG-Coenzyme A enzyme necessary for the production of both cholesterolCholesterol is one of the major fat-soluble compounds that is found in animal plasma membranes. It is necessary for life and is found throughout the body. It is carried from the liver to the tissues where it is needed by lipoproteins of which it is a component. Much of the cholesterol is transported in Low density lipoproteins (LDL). High levels... More and Q10.
Looking at Q10 with wonder
So, what do you say?
The word wonder is defined as the feeling of being filled with admiration or amazement or awe by the prospect of a phenomenon. Can we agree, do you think, that the combination of the safety of Q10 and the benefits of Q10 can seem amazing and admirable, and even awe-inspiring, to us?
Should we re-think the concept of wonder drug, at least, as it applies to what Q10 does in the cells?
Please click here for more information about the benefits of Coenzyme Q10 supplementation.