A course of procaine (Gerovital H3) retards the aging process and prolongs life.
This is the central longevity claim of the Gerovital program: that systemic procaine slows aging and lengthens life. Parhon and Aslan advanced procaine as a preventive and curative agent for aging phenomena in 1957, and Aslan’s own 1965 Journal of Gerontology paper reported extended lifespan in procaine-treated albino rats. The claim is classified at a hard endpoint (lifespan and the rate of aging) and as refuted: the 1977 Ostfeld, Smith, and Stotsky review of the world literature, covering more than 100,000 treated patients, found no convincing evidence that procaine or Gerovital has any anti-aging value beyond a possible antidepressant effect, and Perls (2013) restated that no scientifically credible evidence supports procaine for age-related disease. The animal lifespan finding was not borne out as a demonstrated human anti-aging effect.
Appears in
Sources
- Preventive treatment and cure of aging phenomena; action of novocaine as eutrophic and rejuvenating factor — Parhon CI, Aslan A. '[Preventive treatment and cure of aging phenomena; action of novocaine as eutrophic and rejuvenating factor].' *Revue des Sciences Medicales* 1957;2:5-21. PMID 13579904. French.
- Long-term treatment with procaine (Gerovital H3) in albino rats — Aslan A, Vrabiescu A, Domilescu C, Campeanu L, et al. 'Long-term treatment with procaine (Gerovital H3) in albino rats.' *Journal of Gerontology* 1965 Jan;20:1-8. PMID 14246524. doi:10.1093/geronj/20.1.1.
- The systemic use of procaine in the treatment of the elderly: a review — Ostfeld A, Smith CM, Stotsky BA. 'The systemic use of procaine in the treatment of the elderly: a review.' *Journal of the American Geriatrics Society* 1977 Jan;25(1):1-19. PMID 12204. doi:10.1111/j.1532-5415.1977.tb00917.x.
- The Reappearance of Procaine Hydrochloride (Gerovital H3) for Antiaging — Perls TT. 'The Reappearance of Procaine Hydrochloride (Gerovital H3) for Antiaging.' *Journal of the American Geriatrics Society* 2013;61(6):1024-1025. PMID 23772727. doi:10.1111/jgs.12278.