What nitric oxide does
Start with where it comes from, because that answers most of the worry.
Dr. Martin, The Doctor Is In, Episode 1708And what we learned in the eighties is that your body makes nitric oxide. It's a molecule. We didn't even know it existed in the 1970s.
He was in school in the seventies, and he is clear that nobody was teaching this then. The discovery was big enough to be recognised at the highest level.
Dr. Martin, The Doctor Is In, Episode 1708And again, another Nobel Prize was awarded to those who discovered nitric oxide.
And the function, in his words, is one sentence long.
Dr. Martin, The Doctor Is In, Episode 1708And I'll tell you guys one of the best ways, okay, because remember what nitric oxide does, it opens blood vessels, nitric oxide opens blood vessels.
Why he cares about it after 60
He brought nitric oxide up on this episode while talking about protecting the brain, and his reasoning runs through the eyes. Looking into an eye as a student, what struck him was the blood supply behind it. Who has the most trouble with their eyes? Diabetics, he says, and the reason is blood supply, because sugar destroys blood vessels.
Then he moves the same logic up into the brain, which has an enormous blood supply of its own.
Dr. Martin, The Doctor Is In, Episode 1708So when you want to protect your brain, think of blood, blood supply, very, very important.
That is the whole reason nitric oxide is on his list after 60. It is not an energy trick. It is circulation.
"Think blood supply, sugar, negative, nitric oxide, positive."
Dr. Martin, The Doctor Is In, Episode 1708Is it safe after 60
Two honest things, and it is worth separating them.
The molecule. Nitric oxide is made inside you every day. Raising it with sunlight, coffee, movement or an antioxidant is not introducing a foreign chemical, which is what most women are really asking when they ask if it is safe at their age.
The question he did not answer here. This episode is about preventing Alzheimer's. He does not work through blood pressure medication, heart medication or any drug interaction on it, so nothing on this page should be read as him clearing any of that. If you take medication, especially for blood pressure or your heart, that is a conversation with your own practitioner before you add anything.
One piece of history he does give. Back in the seventies they used nitroglycerin for angina, because a heart in spasm needed blood supply and nothing worked like it. That is a drug, and it is a different thing to the nitric oxide your body makes. He mentions it to explain how long medicine has been chasing the same job.
What raises it, free
Before any bottle, he names things that cost nothing.
Dr. Martin, The Doctor Is In, Episode 1708You know one of the best things to elevate nitric oxide? Vitamin D, the sun. It elevates nitric oxide. So does coffee.
Then movement, which he files under his own joke name for it.
Dr. Martin, The Doctor Is In, Episode 1708Vitamin E, exercise. Move. You know how good that is for your brain?
Vitamin E is exercise in his shorthand. He points at leg work in particular, and the reason is the same one as always: blood supply.
And the thing to take away rather than add.
Dr. Martin, The Doctor Is In, Episode 1708Remember, cut out the sugars. Sugar is destructive.
He puts breads, pastas, cereals, rice and juices in that group. His longer version of what sugar does inside you is here: it only takes a month of eating sugar to get fatty liver.
What he looks for in a supplement
He names one, and he names what is in it.
Dr. Martin, The Doctor Is In, Episode 1708And one of the best supplements you could ever take for nitric oxide is Navitol.
What is in it is pine bark extract, which he wrote a book about roughly 35 years ago. Two things made him keep it: it is one of the few natural products he says crosses the blood brain barrier, and it works on two fronts at once.
Dr. Martin, The Doctor Is In, Episode 1708It's not only an antioxidant that protects your brain, it protects your brain from free radical damage, but it elevates your nitric oxide.
So the standard, if you are comparing products: what is actually raising the nitric oxide, and does it do anything else worth having.
Nothing here is a reason to start or stop anything a doctor has prescribed. Talk to your doctor first.
What to check before you start
- Read the label and know the one ingredient doing the work.
- If you take medication of any kind, ask your practitioner first. That is the standard line at the bottom of this page and it is there for a reason.
- Start with the dose on the bottle rather than a dose from a podcast.
Common questions
Is nitric oxide safe for seniors?
Nitric oxide is a molecule your own body produces, which is the part most people are really asking about. Dr. Martin treats raising it as a circulation goal after 60. He does not discuss drug interactions on this episode, so anyone on medication should ask their practitioner before adding a supplement.
What does nitric oxide actually do?
It opens blood vessels. That is his one line answer, and it is why he brings it up when he talks about protecting the brain, where blood supply is everything.
How can I raise nitric oxide without a supplement?
Sun, coffee and exercise are the three he names, with leg work called out for the blood supply it drives. He also says to cut the sugars, because sugar is destructive to blood vessels.
Is nitric oxide the same as nitroglycerin?
No. Nitroglycerin is a medication used for angina, which he remembers from the seventies. Nitric oxide is the molecule your body makes, and it was not even known to exist when he was in school.
Read next: How To Improve Circulation After 60 and Blood Pressure In Women Over 60: What The Numbers Mean.
Check it is right for you
Navitol Ultra Strength is built around the pine bark extract Dr. Martin calls his miracle nutrient, the one he uses for blood flow.
60-day money-back guarantee.These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. Always consult your healthcare practitioner before starting a new supplement, especially if you are pregnant, nursing, taking medication, or have a medical condition.
