Urolithin A

Supplements · Antioxidants · Supplement, Typed Supps

A compound your gut bacteria make from pomegranates and walnuts, being studied for muscle and cell-energy benefits — with real but still early human proof.

Stage by stage

Intake (Capsule (purified urolithin A)): Absorbed through the small intestine.
Small intestine (Absorbed): Taken up directly, bypassing reliance on individual gut bacteria conversion.
Bloodstream (Circulates): Carried through the blood to muscle and other tissues.
Skeletal muscle (Mitochondrial genes): Studied for upregulating mitochondrial-related gene expression and supporting muscle endurance.

What the evidence supports

Improving muscle endurance and strength in middle-aged and older adults — limited evidence. Two randomized trials in older and middle-aged adults found modest improvements in muscle endurance, strength (roughly 12% in one trial), and mitochondrial gene expression biomarkers after 4 months of 500–1000mg/day. These are genuine, published human results, but the trial base is still small and short relative to how the compound is marketed.
Inducing mitophagy and extending lifespan — insufficient evidence. The mitophagy-inducing mechanism and lifespan-extension findings are well established in worms and mice. In humans, trials have shown upregulation of mitochondrial-related gene expression, a plausible downstream signal, but no human study has demonstrated a longevity or clinical mitophagy outcome directly.
Evidence on Short-term safety and tolerability at doses up to 1000mg/day — moderate evidence. Urolithin A holds GRAS status in the US, and trials dosing up to 1000mg/day for 4 months reported no serious adverse events. Longer-term safety data beyond several months isn’t yet available.

Typical dose

500–1000mg/day in the human trials conducted so far

Upper limit: No established UL

Timing

Taken once daily, with or without food, in the trials conducted so far.

Time to effect

~4 months: Published human trials measured muscle strength and mitochondrial gene expression changes after about four months of daily dosing.

Common myth

"Urolithin A is a proven mitophagy and longevity supplement." In reality: The mitophagy and lifespan-extension evidence comes mainly from worms and mice; in people, published trials show more modest muscle strength and endurance gains over several months.