Fisetin benefits
Health benefits of fisetin.
What is fisetin?
Strawberries are one of those delightful fruits that are both very sweet and very healthy to consume. One of the many reasons that they’re so good for you is because they contain a large amount of a special polyphenol called fisetin1. Fisetin is a natural flavonoid that can be found in a great variety of plants; in many of these, it serves as a natural colouring agent that gives the plant its yellow colour. It also naturally occurs in different fruits such as persimmons, grapes, and peaches, but most commonly, the strawberry is known to possess an abundance of fisetin.
There are many ways in which fisetin can benefit you, including its antiviral properties, the way it can protect your heart and your brain from developing diseases, and how it keeps your bones strong and healthy as they get older. Below you’ll find an overview of the different ways fisetin can help you in your journey towards ageing vitally and maintaining a healthy body.
Fisetin as a senolytic agent
One of the main ways in which fisetin has caught people’s attention as a greatly beneficial supplement is because of its role as a senolytic agent in your body. It affects senolytics: compounds which are able to specifically target so-called senescent cells. These are cells which have lost the ability to divide and replicate themselves and no longer function effectively. Senolytics target and kill these cells effectively, clearing room and available energy for your healthy and functioning cells instead. Fisetin is a very effective senolytic agent: it has been shown to efficiently clear out aged and damaged cells in your body. Essentially it induces apoptosis in these senescent cells, which helps your body to reduce the effects of age-related tissue problems and has been linked to both a healthier body and a prolonged and healthier lifespan2.
Fisetin’s antioxidative properties
Another important way in which fisetin helps your body thrive is through its strong antioxidative properties. Like other antioxidants, fisetin functions well to neutralise free radicals in your body and thus preventing them from doing damage to cells in your muscles, organs, and brain. Additionally, fisetin helps to activate MAPK pathways which regulate cell division and differentiation, your cells’ stress responses, and gene expression3. Through ensuring these pathways are properly regulated and the amount of free radicals roaming free in your body is kept in check, fisetin fights oxidative stress and greatly lessens the risks it might otherwise pose.
Notably, fisetin also helps your body to maintain a better cellular redox balance. This refers to the balance between reduced and oxidised molecules in a cell. Your cells are constantly engaging in redox reactions, in which the oxidation level of a cell is changed; this is necessary to transfer electrons between cells and to provide your cells with the power and energy they need to function. The mitochondria, the powerhouse of the cell, is a vital player in this, and fisetin prevents it from producing too much ROS (reactive oxygen species). In addition to this, fisetin activates a process called mitophagy, which finds and destroys damaged mitochondria that no longer function well, allowing your cells to remain a healthy balance 4.
Protecting your brain with fisetin
The aforementioned antioxidative properties that fisetin is known for also make it a very effective tool in combating cognitive damage and providing neurological protection to your brain. Oxidative stress is a notorious damage-dealer in your body and can have a detrimental effect on your brain and the pace at which it ages and deteriorates. It can impair the function of proteins in your brain, and does damage to your DNA, leading your brain to develop different neurodegenerative illnesses. Fisetine protects your cells from sustaining oxidative damage in its role as an antioxidant. It’s not just these properties, but they’re very useful in the process as fisetin takes a multifaceted approach to protecting your brain from developing several kinds of neurological disorders. Fisetin’s therapeutic properties help protect your cells alongside the reduction of oxidative stress in your body, potentially slowing the progression of diseases like Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and Huntington’s disease5.
Fisetin boosts your cardiovascular system
Fisetin provides a boost to your cardiovascular system and encourages a healthy heart through its established antioxidative properties, its anti-inflammatory properties, and the way it affects your blood flow. As said before, oxidative stress can do a lot of damage to your body and your heart is no exception to this rule. Oxidative stress in your heart can lead to chronic heart failure, putting you at severe risk of developing significant cardiovascular conditions like hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. Additionally, oxidative stress can damage your blood vessels and make you develop atherosclerosis, filling your arteries with plaque which can lead to blockages, causing strokes and heart attacks6. By reducing your oxidative stress, fisetin can greatly reduce your risk of serious cardiac events and strokes, and keep your blood flow running smoothly without any blockages.
Your heart is vulnerable to oxidative stress, but it’s also very vulnerable to chronic inflammation, such as myocarditis and pericarditis. These conditions, which are inflammation of your heart muscle and your pericardium respectively, can impact the long term condition of your heart, your day to day activities, and reduce your heart’s ability to maintain a healthy blood flow7, 8. The pericardium is the tissue that surrounds and protects your heart, and pericarditis can mean you have to deal with pressure on the chest, chest pains, and fatigue in your daily activities. Fisetin, with its anti-inflammatory properties, helps your body to prevent the development of conditions like myocarditis and pericarditis.
Preventing bone damage with fisetin
Fisetin is an excellent supplement if you’re looking for something to help you age without losing the ability to be as active as you are now or were before. In addition to the established antioxidative and anti-inflammatory properties that fisetin possesses, which also help your body to prevent your bones from taking too much damage, fisetin have their own way of protecting your bones. Fisetin can help you with this by protecting your bones from the effects of old age. Fisetin regulates something called your bone metabolism, which deals with osteoblasts and osteoclasts. Osteoblasts are cells which form new bone tissue and keep your bones healthy and strong; osteoclasts which absorb damaged bone tissue, allowing osteoblasts to replace the damaged parts of your bones with stronger tissue9. Fisetin encourages the production of osteoblasts and osteoclasts, allowing your bones to continue to renew themselves and remain healthy as you get older.
Fisetin’s antiviral properties
Fisetin has been the subject of various studies that look at the way it interacts with different viruses that can affect the human body. Like other flavonoids, it has antiviral properties that both directly fight viruses in the body and also inhibit the virus’s ability to replicate itself and spread through the body. Fisetin interacts with viral enzymes and proteins to protect your body against viral activity. Specifically, it has shown to have an effect against dengue virus, also known as breakbone fever, and different enteroviruses10. Enteroviruses or enteric viruses are a group of viruses that mainly live in the intestines, hence the name enteric viruses. They include many different viruses and a few different subgroups of viruses, including the group of polioviruses. Fisetin has notably shown effective in fighting this group of viruses, and inhibiting their spread in your body.
Once again, too, this is an area in which fisetin’s antioxidative properties can really shine. Viruses are clever and know how to spread in the most effective way possible, and they are good at taking advantage of vulnerable cells that have been damaged by oxidative stress. Leaving your cells unprotected and damaged makes it easier for viruses to spread and cause serious harm to your body. Fisetin’s protection against oxidative stress makes it harder for a virus to fight its way through your body, as there are less damaged cells to take advantage of in that manner.
Fisetin dosage and side effects
Given fisetin’s many beneficial properties, it’s no surprise that despite its current relative obscurity, it’s gaining in popularity. If you want to benefit from fisetin, you could take the long route and stock up on strawberries, or you could opt for the convenient method of adding a daily fisetin supplement to your diet. It is recommended to take the supplement daily with a meal. This helps your body absorb the fisetin easier, and helps to prevent any stomach irritation that might come from taking any kind of supplement on an empty stomach. The recommended dose of fisetin is between 100 and 500 mg a day, though you are able to take up to 1000 mg a day without causing problems.
Potential side effects of fisetin supplements include gastrointestinal issues like stomach cramps or constipation, but since it’s a naturally occurring polyphenol found in a variety of fruits and vegetables, the adverse side effects are limited and generally mild. The stomach irritation can be alleviated by taking the supplement with a meal instead of on an empty stomach.
As always, of course, if you’re considering adding a new supplement or medication of any kind to your diet or routine, it’s recommended to discuss this with your gp or other healthcare provider to ensure you’re making the right decision for yourself.
Conclusion: fisetin helps you age comfortably and healthy
Fisetin is a multifaceted and effective flavonol with strong antioxidative properties that also functions as a way to manage senescent cells, viruses, and ageing bones. It protects your brain against developing neurodegenerative illnesses, it protects your heart from developing inflammation related conditions, and it protects your bones from sustaining too much damage as your cells age. It does all of this as a naturally occurring polyphenol which can be consumed through eating fruits like strawberries and apples, but more conveniently can be taken at larger quantities through special fisetin supplements. If you’re looking for a way to maintain your health and protect yourself from the effects of old age and even different viruses, fisetin is an excellent choice.
References
1: “Strawberries Can Prevent Alzheimer’s Disease.” Daily Health Post, 14 Oct. 2018, https://dailyhealthpost.com/strawberry-fisetin-prevents-alzheimers-disease/.
2: Dillow, Clay. “Fisetin, the Anti-Aging Flavonoid, Found in Strawberries.” New Atlas, 2 Oct. 2018, https://newatlas.com/fisetin-flavonoid-anti-aging-mouse-study/56610/.
3: Yousefzadeh, Matthew J., et al. “Fisetin Is a Senotherapeutic that Extends Health and Lifespan.” EBioMedicine, vol. 36, 2018, pp. 18–28. PubMed Central (PMC), https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5412436/.
4: Wang, Yingying, et al. “Fisetin Inhibits NLRP3 Inflammasome by Suppressing TLR4/MD2-Mediated Mitochondrial ROS Production.” Antioxidants, vol. 10, no. 8, 2021, p. 1215. MDPI, https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3921/10/8/1215.
5: Jiang, Y., Tang, X., Deng, P. et al. “The Neuroprotective Role of Fisetin in Different Neurological Diseases: a Systematic Review.” Molecular neurobiology, 60, https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12035-023-03469-7.
6: “How Does Oxidative Stress Impact Heart Health?” Natural Heart Doctor, 9 Dec. 2022, https://naturalheartdoctor.com/how-does-oxidative-stress-impact-heart-health/.
7: “Myocarditis.” Mayo Clinic, 13 Apr. 2022, https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/myocarditis/symptoms-causes/syc-20352539.
8: Hullet, Alysa. “Myocarditis vs. Pericarditis: What’s the Difference Between These Inflammatory Heart Conditions?” Healthline, https://www.healthline.com/health/heart-health/myocarditis-vs-pericarditis
9: Léotoing, Laurent, et al. “The Polyphenol Fisetin Protects Bone by Repressing NF-κB and MKP-1-Dependent Signaling Pathways in Osteoclasts.” PLOS ONE, vol. 8, no. 7, 2013, e68388. https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0068388.
10: Ninfali, Paolino, et al. “Antiviral Properties of Flavonoids and Delivery Strategies.” Nutrients, vol. 12, no. 9, 2020, https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/12/9/2534.