{
  "id": 26380,
  "title": "The promise of eternal youth: a multi-million-dollar business not without danger",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/01/la-promesa-de-la-eterna-juventud-un-negocio-multimillonario-no-exento",
  "topic": "health",
  "section": "Health & Medicine",
  "published": "2026-08-01T15:45:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "El Pais",
    "slug": "el-pais",
    "url": "https://elpais.com/economia/negocios/2026-08-01/la-promesa-de-la-eterna-juventud-un-negocio-milmillonario-no-exento-de-peligros.html"
  },
  "original_language": "es",
  "account": "In the Middle Ages, doctors, who at the time worked with their potions and theories of humors, understood that their profession should only aspire to restore the lost health of a patient, recomposing the deregulated balances: restitutio ad integrum (restoration to integrity), because any other pretension clashed with the principle that God had made things well, and they could not be improved. Over the centuries, human beings moved towards the center of the entire worldview, and this principle evolved into a conception of medicine that no longer sought only to cure, but to improve and perfect: transformatio ad optimum (transformation to better). This principle, which has allowed the most spectacular scientific and medical advances in the last two centuries, has done nothing but extend and impose itself, in an incessant search for formulas to combat diseases, limitations, and ultimately, old age. Behind this obsession with not aging, there is not only a scientific or humanist interest, but also a lucrative business that is transforming companies in the pharmaceutical industry and the aesthetic medicine sector.\n\nA solution not suitable for all\n\nBeyond the business opportunities that this sector represents, nutrition and health experts warn that there are risks, especially for people with complicated health conditions or for pregnant women. \"Supplements are not subject to drug law, but are in the miscellaneous drawer of food. Nothing has to happen, but there are risks, sometimes due to dosage, sometimes because they interact with other medications the person is taking, or sometimes because they are adulterated,\" explains Jordi Salas, professor of Nutrition at the Universitat Rovira i Virgili. He cites the case of a natural supplement for sexuality called Bichota, which the Spanish Medicines and Healthcare Products Agency withdrew last March because it was adulterated with viagra; or natural products against inflammation made with St. John's Wort, which have contraindications with antidepressant or anticoagulant drugs; or the withdrawal of vitamin D or Omega 3 products with excessively high doses; or caffeine capsules that adolescents use to better tolerate alcohol. \"There are companies that do explain the risks and act responsibly, but others do not, because they are not required to put certain things, such as contraindications,\" Salas explains. The key, according to him, is that most substances are already present in a balanced diet, and a supplement would only be really necessary for a person with a specific and evaluable deficit. \"But consumption has extended without reason, and without taking into account the risks to safety,\" he concludes.\n\nRegarding collagen, the experts consulted warn that it is not that it has undesirable effects, but the problem is one of misleading advertising, since its effectiveness has not been demonstrated. \"There are many articles on collagen, but if you filter them by funding sources, you see that they are part of the promotional strategy,\" warns Juan Revenga, director of the degree in Human Nutrition and Dietetics at the University of Valencia. This professor points out that if the business has grown so much, it is due to a combination of consumers' desire to \"believe in miracles,\" the lack of strict regulation, and the rise of online sales: \"Many companies launch their supplement lines and offer their products to influencers. To market many of them, you need the same regulation as for jam.\" Both experts point out that the authorities are concerned about the extension of consumption, but the variety is so high, and products are renewed so often, that regulation cannot keep up: \"Specific regulation and training for doctors are needed. This industry has grown a lot, but this type of product has always existed. It's not about generating alarm, but about pointing out the lack of effectiveness and risks for vulnerable people,\" Salas notes.",
  "summary": "Products that claim to keep the passage of time at bay generate a multi-million-dollar industry, but also give rise to abuse.",
  "key_points": [
    "\"Eternal youth\" business fuels pharmaceutical and aesthetic medicine growth",
    "Potential risks for vulnerable people, including pregnant women",
    "Supplements not subject to drug law but food manufacturing rules"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}