← Blood tests
AST (Aspartate Aminotransferase)
Routine annualalso sgot
What it isAST is an enzyme found in liver, heart, skeletal muscle, kidney, and red blood cells. Like ALT, it catalyzes an amino acid metabolism step and leaks into the bloodstream when its host cells are damaged.
DoesReports cell injury — but from any of several tissues, not just liver.
GoodLow AST signals healthy liver and muscle without ongoing damage.
BadElevated AST flags liver disease, muscle injury, cardiac damage, or hemolysis. When AST rises higher than ALT, alcoholic liver disease is the leading suspect.
- Standard
- 8–48 U/L.
- Optimal
- 10–22 U/L (lower is good)
- Modifiers
- Rises briefly with intense exercise and muscle injury (rhabdomyolysis); rises in alcohol use.
How to optimize
- Lifestyle
- Resistance training and Zone 2 cardio for visceral fat; eliminate alcohol; avoid excessive endurance exercise without recovery.
- Diet
- Cut fructose, refined carbs, seed oils, alcohol; Mediterranean pattern.
- Supplements
- Berberine (500mg 3×/day), N-acetylcysteine (600mg 2×/day), choline (500mg/day), milk thistle silymarin (200mg 3×/day).
- Peptides
- GLP-1 agonists.
- Drugs
- GLP-1 agonists, pioglitazone; resmetirom for NASH.
Milk Thistle (Silymarin)N-Acetyl Cysteine (NAC)BerberineCholine
Reference ranges are general adult lab norms; optimal ranges are editorial picks from the longevity literature — not medical advice. Always interpret results with your physician.
within Liver & Detox