Episode 217: MetaPWR Advantage with Dr. Russell Osguthorpe

doTERRA: We are so excited about the new MetaPWR Advantage and the whole MetaPWR System, so we wanted to speak to an expert and get our most burning questions answered.

Welcome back to Essential Oil Solutions with doTERRA, the podcast where you'll hear exciting, useful, and simple everyday uses for essential oils from experts in the field. Today’s episode is brought to you by the MetaPWR System. Designed to help you live your most powerful life, this three-step system will be a game-changer in your daily routine as you embark on your journey to supporting a healthy metabolism.

Right now, as a podcast exclusive if you buy the MetaPWR System and enter the promo code PODCAST at checkout, we’ll send you an exclusive audiobook, doTERRA MetaPWR: The 3-Step System for Metabolic Health. Check out the link in our episode description or visit doterra.com/podcastoffer to learn more. Open to US orders only. Today we're excited to talk to Dr. Russell Osguthorpe, Chief Medical Officer for doTERRA, all about the brand new MetaPWR Advantage.

Dr. Osguthorpe, thank you so much for sitting down with us today.

Dr. Osguthorpe: My pleasure. Great to be with you.

The Journey to MetaPWR

doTERRA: We are so excited to talk to you. And I want to start with the journey to get to the MetaPWR System. Can you tell us a little bit about that?

Dr. Osguthorpe: It has been a journey. Actually, the MetaPWR journey is longer than most people think. We've been talking about this at doTERRA since shortly after my arrival. So, over the last three years, we have spent a great deal of time in the research and development arm of doTERRA, both the product development team as well as the scientists at doTERRA, the clinical researchers devising this product launch and MetaPWR, metabolism in general, was where we started. And we started there for obvious reasons, but we went with metabolism because of how huge a problem it is and how doTERRA is uniquely situated with its Wellness Advocates and its business model to make an impact in that particular arena.

Why do we need MetaPWR?

doTERRA: Absolutely. You mentioned how big of a problem our metabolic health can be, why is it that the MetaPWR System is so needed?

Dr. Osguthorpe: MetaPWR is in such high demand because of our North American lifestyle. Our metabolism is kind of broken as a society. We eat way too much ultra-processed food or processed food, and we spend far too much time being inactive. This combination has led to huge problems for us individually and collectively as a society. MetaPWR is our response as a company in a way to try and address this major issue.

In fact, recent studies have shown that only 7% or under 7% of North Americans have optimal cardio metabolic health. That number is staggering. To me, that means that not only the majority of us, but the vast, vast majority of us have a lot of room to improve our metabolic health and we need to get busy doing it or else we're going to be impacted fairly significantly individually and as a society.

doTERRA: And I think when you hear those numbers laid out, it definitely, like you said, it is just a staggering number and it really makes you think about the lifestyle choices that you and I and everyone else are making every single day. Now, let's dive a little bit deeper into the MetaPWR System, specifically with MetaPWR Advantage. Can you give us a little bit of an introduction to what MetaPWR Advantage is?

What is MetaPWR Advantage?

Dr. Osguthorpe: I like to personally think of MetaPWR Advantage as a NMN delivery system. NMN is one of the molecules in a biosynthetic pathway that leads to NAD. NAD is the molecule that ends up powering all of our cells, all of our systems everywhere in our body. And as we age our NAD levels, they just fall continually. They fall once we hit our mid-twenties to mid-thirties, you can see your energy level really predictably fall.

And when we change that NAD level, our cells can function differently with higher levels of NAD, allowing our cells to function more optimally, much like they did when we were younger. And when you look at the clinical studies that have been done on NAD, NMN, and this biosynthetic pathway, it's clear that we certainly can change the way we feel and function through tweaking this biosynthetic pathway through supplementation.

doTERRA: Yes, and I think we've all felt that decline as we've gotten older. And who wouldn't want to feel the energy and the just resilience to everything?

Dr. Osguthorpe: It is really quite remarkable how those NAD levels fall over time. And we have shown that with supplementation, you can raise those NAD levels. And raising those NAD levels gives your body more of the molecule that your cells need to function perfectly. I kind of think of it in one way as if NAD is a biomarker of aging. As our NAD levels fall, we age, right? We age because we get older, right? But one of the markers of that aging process is our NAD levels are continually falling year over year over year.

And what supplementation does is it allows ourselves to function with a higher level of NAD, much like they functioned when they were younger.

Studies about NMN

doTERRA: So, that is a fantastic introduction to the NMN and NAD+, can you tell me a little bit more about studies that have been done on NMN and what could an individual expect to see taking MetaPWR Advantage consistently in their life?

Dr. Osguthorpe: Absolutely. There's tons of in vitro data as well as in vivo data on NMN. There are three randomized controlled clinical trials with, that are placebo controlled, on NMN, which stands for nicotinamide mono nucleotide, just rolls off the tongue there. But NMN has been the target of multiple studies, and these three studies have looked at different populations of people who take NMN and what they experience.

Generally, when you look at the people who take NMN compared to those people who take placebo, you see dramatic improvements, statistically significant improvements in people's sleep, the restorative sleep they get, their amount of fatigue they feel, and when we looked at performance athletes, so athletes who are competitive athletes, not just Saturday's warriors, right? But real competitive athletes, their VO2 max, or their performance, increases when they take NN. Their times for whatever race they're training for get shorter compared to those same trained athletes who are on placebo. So, NMN actually helps with performance. It helps us with restorative sleep, it helps us feel less fatigued as it relates to MetaPWR Advantage.

Our source of NMN, unlike these other trials, is natural. It's not a synthetic product like the products that have been tested in the past. Our product, when we have tested it, has been shown to do several things that we think are highly beneficial. One, it decreases fatigue and improves sleep significantly. Three, it also upregulates the expression of genes in the aging category of genes.

So, these are genes like sirtuins and FOX, gene families that are involved in longevity. And these genes are upregulated sometimes two or four fold when we take NMN as a human being in response as compared to placebo. The other thing that has been studied, which I think is important for many people when we talk about longevity, is that the NMN, the source of NM that we use, they looked at a dermatologic tool. They used a dermatologic tool that looked at the fine lines and wrinkles around the eyes of every participant who did the study.

And this dermatologic tool maps every line and every wrinkle around the eye, a common place where we see those. And after being on a for a month, the people who are on an amend for that period of time had a statistically significant decrease in their fine lines and wrinkles around the eye, indicating that the cells and the function are improved. We see that as well with collagen and I think that that's why the MetaPWR Advantage product line is formulated the way that it is.

doTERRA: And that is so amazing. And you mentioned these studies with statistical significance, and I don't know that people always understand how incredible it is to see that and how hard it is to get that statistical significance in these studies.

Dr. Osguthorpe: Yeah, most people are not statisticians or bio statisticians and don't understand what it means. Statistical significance means that the observed finding that you see as an outcome in the study that you're doing is highly unlikely to be due to chance alone. So if you have a P value of 0.05, we, or less than 0.05, we say that that has reached statistical significance. That means that there is a less than 5% chance that the finding that you observed is due to chance alone.

And it's one way that we basically analyze the power of an effect that we are able to measure clinically on a human population taking a particular product.

MetaPWR Advantage Research

doTERRA: So, speaking of trials and research, can you tell us a little bit about how MetaPWR Advantage was studied?

Dr. Osguthorpe: Absolutely. I'd be happy to. So, the first trial that was done was a preliminary study that looked at dosing and we looked at a small number of human beings taking MetaPWR Advantage, measuring their NAD levels prior to starting MetaPWR Advantage. And then at certain points during their journey while taking MetaPWR, the group of individuals who took MetaPWR Advantage had very predictable rises in their NAD levels at two weeks and at four weeks after taking MetaPWR Advantage. That's very important because that's the end result that we want to see happen, that our circulating NAD levels rise when we take NMN.

That's the whole point. We want to give ourselves more NAD that's why I call MetaPWR Advantage an NAD delivery system is because you're feeding that whole biosynthetic pathway. And we've done a preliminary dose-finding study to show that we do see those effects with MetaPWR Advantage.

The next set of studies we're doing is a look at the studies to determine, with a larger group of people, the absolute rise an average human being can expect when taking MetaPWR Advantage instead of just a small number of people, we're going to do a much larger group of people.

Then we're also going to repeat some of the studies, or we are repeating some of the studies, that I detailed earlier, looking at gene expression and multiple different outcomes related to MetaPWR Advantage. Those two studies are ongoing. We hope to have those results done within the next two months.

doTERRA: Like you said, it's the next two months doTERRA is really trying to push to make sure that this research and information is available about MetaPWR Advantage. And the stuff we already have is so heartening and so incredible to see. So, obviously hearing this information, people are going to want to be using MetaPWR Advantage. How do you recommend working this product into your everyday routine?

Dr. Osguthorpe: MetaPWR Advantage can be taken any way you want. I recommend doing it once a day, one packet, one sachet a day. And we've seen with our studies to date that we get the NAD rise we want in that pattern. The other thing that I would recommend doing is finding the right time of day for you. Depending on who you are there are studies to suggest that taking NAD in the morning or the evening might be better for you. For example, there was a study in Japan that looked at a group of people over the age of 60 and they had statistically significant increases in their outcomes or improvements in the outcomes that were measured when they took it at night versus in the morning.

And so, we think that perhaps the older you are, the more likely you'd want to take it in the evening, the more younger you are you could take it in the morning. Remember that clinical trials are on populations of people and what you want to know is how does it work for me? How does it work for you? And so, one sachet a day, try and find the right time of day for you. Some people can experience fatigue because NMN improves your restorative sleep. So, if you're finding if you take it in the morning and you're feeling a little bit groggy in the afternoon, try taking it at night with your evening meal and then letting that restorative sleep aspect that comes with NMN, improve your sleep and then you'll feel better in the morning would be my bet.

Dr. Osguthorpe’s Biggest Takeaway

doTERRA: Absolutely. I love that emphasis on finding what works for you because we are so different, nobody's the same, and you want to make sure that you're giving your body the best chance. Before we end, I want to know, Dr. Osguthorpe, if there is one takeaway that you could leave people with about MetaPWR Advantage, what would that be?

Dr. Osguthorpe: Hmm. I've said it a couple of times, but I think of MetaPWR Advantage as an NAD delivery system, and that's the molecule that you want at high levels so that you can increase the quality of your years. And in essence, what I really think takes place with MetaPWR Advantage in this supplement is that when we take it, our NAD levels increase, allowing them to function better. So, if you're working on your metabolism, if you're trying to improve your health MetaPWR Advantage will help you do that by allowing your cells to function better like they did when they were a little bit younger.

They'll have more energy than they did before. And if you look at all the stuff on nicotinamide mono nucleotide, or NMN, NR, NADH, niacin, these are all in the same biosynthetic pathway. And all of it, for me, is designed to increase your NAD. If you want your cells to function well, give them more NAD, your cells will function better.

doTERRA: And I can't think of a single person who wouldn't want that.

Dr. Osguthorpe: Me neither.

doTERRA: Dr. Osguthorpe it has been incredible to talk to you today to learn from your expertise and find out a little bit more about what makes MetaPWR Advantage so unique.

Dr. Osguthorpe: Great to be with you. Thank you.

doTERRA: Thanks for joining us and congratulations on living a healthier lifestyle with essential oils. If you want to try any of the products you learned about, click on the link in the episode description or find a Wellness Advocate near you to place an order today. And remember, if you liked what you heard today, rate, review and subscribe wherever you listen.

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.