What Is Autophagy?
Autophagy is a process by which our body cleans damaged or unnecessary cells to regenerate newer, healthier cells. The word “auto” denotes self, and “phage” denotes eat; when put together, it means self-eating. The other word for autophagy is self-devouring.
Many researchers say that autophagy has several positive health effects. Cells are the basic components of every organ and tissue in the human body. These cells are made up of multiple parts, which have different functions and keep the cell functioning. Over a period, these parts become weak or stop working. The non-functional part becomes junk inside an otherwise healthy cell. Autophagy is a cellular recycling system of the body, allowing a cell to disassemble its non-functional parts and repair the weak parts into new and usable cell parts. A cell can discard the parts it does not need any longer. Also, when there is an excess accumulation of unnecessary junk components in a cell, it can slow down or prevent the normal functioning of a cell. So, autophagy helps to declutter the weak or non-working components of a cell and optimize the cell's performance. Researchers believe that autophagy can be induced in the human body by fasting.
What Is the Significance of Autophagy?
Autophagy plays an important role in the survival and functioning of the cell, like:
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Recycling and repairing weak or damaged cell parts by providing energy to work efficiently.
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Removing non-functional parts creates space and speeds up the performance of the cell.
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Recycling residual proteins.
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Removes toxic proteins from the cells that lead to neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's and Parkinson's.
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It kills pathogens like viruses and bacteria that cause cell damage.
Autophagy plays a significant role in aging and longevity. As the age increases, there is a decline in autophagy, which can lead to an increased build-up of non-functional or junk cellular parts, in turn making the cells less functional.
When the cells are stressed, there is an increase in autophagy to protect the body, which helps increase an individual's lifespan.
During starvation, autophagy keeps the body working by the cellular material breakdown and utilizing it for necessary processes. However, this cannot be continued forever, but it provides nourishment till our body gets energy.
Autophagy is receiving the limelight for its significant performance in preventing or treating cancer. As mentioned before, there is a decline in autophagy as individual ages. This is because the non-functional cells of the parts that harm multiply, which can lead to cancer cells. Cancer can occur when defective cells multiply, and the body does not recognize and remove those cells with the help of autophagic processes. This aspect makes the researchers think about the possibility that autophagy may lower the risk of cancer. However, there is no scientific evidence to support this. Many studies suggest that autophagy significantly removes many cancerous cells by recognizing and destroying harmful cellular parts and triggering the repairing mechanism to lower cancer risk.
Can Autophagy Be Induced?
Autophagy can be induced by stressing the cells, putting them into survival mode. Autophagy can also be induced through the following:
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Fasting - Fasting happens when a person stops eating for a while. During fasting, our body lacks essential energy for normal functioning. The body forces the repurposing of certain cell components to function to meet its needs.
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High-Fat and Low-Carb Diet - Consuming a high-fat and low-carbohydrate diet is commonly called a keto diet. This diet changes how the body burns energy; instead of burning sugar or carbs for energy, it burns fat, which can trigger autophagy.
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Calorie Restriction - Calorie restriction means limiting calorie or energy units consumed by a person. Instead of completely stopping the calorie supply to the body, as with fasting, calorie restriction limits the intake. This can cause autophagy to compensate for nutrient loss.
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Exercise - Exercise puts the body's cells under stress by stimulating processes that increase the ATG's activity, like stressing the skeletal muscles. A researcher explains that exercise can induce autophagy as the cell responds well to the stress caused by exercise. Also, the extent of autophagy varies depending on the intensity and type of exercise an individual performs.
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Curcumin - Curcumin is a naturally occurring chemical present in the turmeric root. Scientists suggested that the intake of curcumin triggers autophagy (proved in studies involving mice). Few studies reports on animals suggest that curcumin-induced restoration of autophagy can protect against diabetic cardiomyopathy (a heart muscle disorder reported in diabetes patients). It also helps fight cognitive impairment caused by chemotherapy by inducing autophagy in brain parts. However, scientists are yet to determine if increasing curcumin consumption can induce autophagy in humans.
It is important to note that inducing autophagy does not mean a person can try it. Because calorie restriction, fasting, or switching to a keto diet is not advisable for pregnant women, breastfeeding women, or people with a certain health condition like diabetes. In the same way, a vigorous exercise routine without a healthcare provider consultation can be harmful.
What Are the Complications of Autophagy?
Autophagy has been considered a double-edged sword as it can exacerbate or mitigate injury. It is necessary to distinguish between the risk factors of autophagy and the risks connected with attempts to induce autophagy. Studies have proved that excessive autophagy might kill cells in the heart, and a link between excessive autophagy and heart problems has been proven.
Development of gallstones is common during fasting when bile in the gallbladder hardens into a stonelike substance. Fasting or calorie restriction is generally contraindicated in the case of pregnant women, underweight people, children, and elderly people.
A study also proposed that inhibiting autophagy in mice limited tumor growth and improved responsiveness to cancer treatment. This study suggests that when there is an increase in autophagy, it can worsen the situation in somebody with existing cancer.
Conclusion:
Autophagy is a bodily process that takes out damaged and unnecessary parts of cells to get younger and healthier cells. Autophagy can cause both positive and negative health effects. There are not many studies regarding the positive aspects of autophagy or how individuals can induce it. Anybody who is fasting, reducing calories, making drastic changes to the diet, or doing a rigorous exercise routine to induce autophagy should seek advice from a doctor beforehand.
