Skip to content

Our Science

Metformin

Metformin targets a metabolic sensor that declines with age, helping cells run more efficiently and freeing up energy for repair and recovery—a key reason researchers are studying it beyond blood sugar.

Good to know

Metformin helps the body handle glucose more efficiently, reducing how much sugar the liver releases and improving insulin sensitivity.

It also activates AMPK, one of the body’s key energy sensors, helping cells shift resources toward maintenance, cleanup, and repair.1

This overlap between metabolic health and cellular maintenance is why longevity researchers are intrigued.

What Metformin may support

The science starts with blood sugar, but it reaches much further. Metformin influences pathways connected to all 12 hallmarks of aging, the biological processes researchers use to understand why our bodies change as we get older.1
Healthier blood sugar by reducing glucose released by the liver and improving insulin response.
Stronger metabolic health by helping the body manage energy and glucose more efficiently.
Better cellular maintenance through pathways involved in mitochondrial function, cleanup, repair, and inflammation.

How Metformin works

Think of AMPK as a cellular fuel gauge. When energy runs low, it signals cells to use resources more efficiently and shifts activity toward maintenance and repair.

Metformin activates this pathway, while also influencing mTOR, autophagy, mitochondrial function, and inflammatory signaling. Those interconnected effects are central to the longevity hypothesis around Metformin.

Explore Metformin

In a UK study of 78K people with diabetes, those on Metformin lived as long or longer.2

78,000

What human studies have found

What controlled and population studies have actually reported, with the caveats that matter.

Longer survival

People on Metformin with diabetes lived as long as those without in one UK study.2

Lower cancer risk

Population studies have linked use with lower rates of some cancers, including gastrointestinal cancers. Observational.3 4 5 6 7

Cognitive health

Long-term Metformin use was linked to less cognitive impairment in one cohort of older adults with diabetes.8

Weight

Modest weight reduction in some overweight and obese adults taking Metformin.10

Reproductive health

Studied in ovarian aging and PCOS, including more regular cycles in one small study.9 11

Blood sugar & insulin

Reduces glucose released by the liver and improves glucose uptake in muscle and insulin-sensitive tissues.

Cardiovascular health

A systematic review found Metformin use was associated with lower cardiovascular disease risk and mortality.

More than 60 years of clinical use

Long before Metformin became a focus of longevity research, it had already built decades of real-world use, safety data, and clinical familiarity.
Used in clinical care for more than 60 years, giving researchers and clinicians a deep history of real-world experience.
FDA approved for type 2 diabetes with decades of use across millions of people.

Included on the World Health Organization’s Model List of Essential Medicines for its established efficacy and safety.12

What we still don’t know

We believe in full transparency. Here’s what current Metformin research does not yet answer.

Lifespan extension

No completed randomized trial shows Metformin extends lifespan in healthy adults.

Study populations

Much of the cancer and cognition data comes from people with diabetes and it is unclear if it applies to the general public.

Mechanism vs. outcomes

AMPK and mTOR give a strong hypothesis, but human healthspan outcomes and studies matter most.

Our research

Our Metformin research is globally recognized

Metformin was one of our earliest longevity protocols, and we’ve spent years building expertise around how it fits into real-world longevity care.

Our Stanford PhD-led Research Team studies Metformin as part of our top-10 XPRIZE Healthspan protocol, while our in-house clinicians bring that science into practice through personalized dosing, ongoing monitoring, and long-term support.

Read our Research
Science-backed

Choose the experts in Metformin

Get a flexible plan backed by years of Metformin experience, with clinician-guided dosing, regular check-ins, unlimited provider messaging, and adjustments along the way.
Trustpilot

Don’t know where to start?

Take our quick quiz to get personalized recommendations based on your goals and where you are in your longevity journey.

Frequently asked questions

01 Why is a diabetes medication being studied for longevity?

Because some of the biology overlaps. Metformin affects glucose metabolism, but it also activates AMPK and influences pathways involved in cellular energy, repair, and maintenance. Those same pathways are central to aging research.

02 Is Metformin proven to extend lifespan?

No. There are encouraging observational studies and strong biological reasons to study it, but Metformin has not been proven to extend lifespan in healthy humans.

03 Is using Metformin for longevity FDA approved?

No. Metformin is FDA approved for type 2 diabetes. Its use for longevity is off-label.

04 How will I know whether it’s working?

Depending on your goals, your care team may follow markers such as blood glucose, HbA1c, kidney function, or other metabolic measures over time. Some people also use a Continuous Glucose Monitor to better understand their day-to-day glucose response.

05 Who may not be a good candidate?

Metformin may not be appropriate for people with significant kidney impairment or certain other medical considerations. Your clinician reviews your health history before prescribing.

06 Why can Metformin affect vitamin B12?

Long-term use has been associated with lower B12 levels in some people. Your care team may recommend monitoring or supplementation when appropriate.

Our idea of a bedtime story?
Clinical trials.

We vet everything on PubMed so you don’t have to. Here’s what the science says.
1
A widely cited review laying out the mechanistic and epidemiological case for Metformin as a geroscience research target, including its effect on AMPK, mTOR, and cellular energy sensing.
Cell Metab, 2016
2
In a UK dataset of more than 78,000 people with type 2 diabetes, those started on Metformin had longer survival than matched people without diabetes.
Diabetes Obes Metab, 2014
3
A case-control study at MD Anderson Cancer Center found Metformin use associated with reduced risk of pancreatic cancer.
Gastroenterology, 2009
4
A retrospective study of more than 62,000 people in the UK found Metformin use associated with lower risk of colon or pancreatic cancer.
Diabetologia, 2009
5
A population study of roughly 800,000 individuals in Taiwan found Metformin associated with reduced incidence of several gastrointestinal cancers.
BMC Cancer, 2011
6
A case-control study of US veterans with diabetes who underwent colonoscopy found Metformin associated with reduced odds of colorectal cancer, particularly rectal cancer.
Clin Transl Gastroenterol, 2019
7
In a retrospective cohort of men with diabetes in Ontario, Canada, longer Metformin exposure after a prostate cancer diagnosis was associated with lower all-cause and cancer-specific mortality.
J Clin Oncol, 2013
8
In a cohort of adults 55 and older followed for four years, Metformin use was associated with a lower likelihood of cognitive impairment.
J Alzheimers Dis, 2014
9
A third-party study combining mouse models and human ovarian tissue found Metformin reduced age-associated ovarian scarring (fibrosis) in mice; human data were tissue-based, not an intervention trial.
Clin Cancer Res, 2020
10
In a naturalistic outpatient study in Germany, Metformin was associated with modest weight reduction in overweight and obese adults, with and without insulin resistance.
Exp Clin Endocrinol Diabetes, 2013
11
In a small clinical study, Metformin was associated with the resumption of normal menstrual cycles in most previously amenorrheic women with polycystic ovary syndrome.
Metabolism, 1999
12
Metformin appears on the WHO Model List of Essential Medicines, the catalog of medicines judged to be the safest, most effective, and most cost-effective for a health system to have available.
WHO Model List of Essential Medicines