Takeaways from the latest longevity research

A couple of weeks ago, I got to go to a women’s longevity conference along with Marie Veronique; Marie’s “Hungarian scientist” (her description—intriguing, no?), Csaba; and Annee de Mamiel. Although I generally don’t jump at the chance to attend massive conferences or expos, needless to say, I was looking forward to this one for weeks.

First of all, I always love getting to see Marie, who is hilarious. (I want to be her when I grow up. And if you missed the Note we posted after a gentle nudge from the wonderful Andrea Ferretti, check it out here. Marie’s “5 fun facts” are enchanting.)

I also loved getting to introduce Marie to Annee, whom I featured last week, because a lot of skincare founders just don’t get to meet one another very frequently.

And huge props to the wonderful Csaba for being one of the very, very, very few men interested enough in this topic to attend the conference and for serving as our little group’s expert on peptides and psychedelics.

Even though longevity is one of those topics that has just about jumped the shark (or, for those of us for whom this scene is indelibly etched into our memories, jumped the couch), it’s still an intriguing one, so I thought I’d share some of the most interesting things I learned. You’ll note that many of the speakers—Doctors Mark Hyman, Mary Claire Haver, and Sara Szal—are very big deals.

My current favorite supplement was featured, too, backed by said very big deals. I’ll tell you more about it and another supplement I picked up to experiment with below; as you might already know, I find supplements very exciting.

Even more exciting: during a break, I ran into a friend who’s also one of the best doctors you could possibly ask about supplements. I’m going to ask her all kinds of questions next week and will share her answers with you! (She likes the favorite supplement I mention below, by the way, and she’s a tough customer.)

A few interesting things we learned

- Dr. Eric Verdin of the Buck Institute stated that lifestyle intervention remains the only demonstrated path to an additional 15-20 healthy years. In his words, “lifestyle intervention” basically means “all the things your grandmother told you to do”: exercise, sleep, diet, social contact, etc. This was echoed by doctors in almost every talk and panel discussion. Memorably, Dr. Verdin said, “A $700 infusion of NAD in Mill Valley contains about $2 worth of material and will do absolutely nothing for your health. Taking a walk in the forest is free and has a lot more of an effect.” I love walks in the forest!

- Dr. Hyman agreed: “We don’t have longevity drugs yet. We have lifestyle interventions, and they work profoundly.” A few that he pointed out: community, relationships, meaning, and purpose. These, he noted, “are not soft add-ons.”

- Loneliness can be a major health risk. Dr. Juliana Schroeder of Berkeley’s Haas School of Business and Dr. Hyman both noted that subjective loneliness predicts mortality at the same rate as smoking 15 cigarettes a day—and Dr. Schroeder shared that people aged 50-70 report feeling lonely nearly every day on average.

- There was a lot of insightful discussion about heart health, and new guidelines recommend that we get our Lp(a) tested at least once in our lifetimes. Dr. Leslie Cho of the Cleveland Clinic pointed out that heart disease is the number one cause of death in women, above all cancers combined. Lp(a), or lipoprotein(a), was mentioned by a number of doctors, including Dr. Cho: it’s a causal risk factor for early heart disease, stroke, and calcific aortic stenosis, but only 1% of the American public has ever had it tested.

- Dr. Sara Szal made a case for sleep, which she called “as close to a panacea as we have in medicine.” She suggests targeting 7-8.5 hours per night. She (and many others) also mentioned the importance of building muscle and supporting mitochondrial health in her blueprint for longevity.

- Jane Fonda, who is in fantastic physical, mental, and spiritual health in her eighties, stole the show. She cited movement, colorful eating, limiting chemical exposure, purposefully building relationships, and meditation as key areas of importance in her healthy “third act.” She said, “I view aging not as a decline into decrepitude but as a stairway, a spiritual ascendance. My body may be falling apart, but my heart and my mind have expanded and grown and gotten better.” Marie, Annee, and I all agreed that we want to be Jane when we’re in our eighties.

My current favorite supplement

Right in line with Dr. Sara Szal’s recommendations for the “in your forties” longevity blueprint (I only have one more year—barely hanging onto the forties!), I started taking a mitochondrial supplement called Mitopure—which I love—a few months ago, and I was excited to see their booth while I was roaming around between speakers. The short story: its key ingredient, Urolithin A, is a naturally occurring postbiotic that triggers mitophagy, the process of clearing out faulty or superfluous mitochondria; most of us don’t produce enough Urolithin A, and poor mitochondrial health can impact everything from the cardiovascular system to the brain, the immune system, fertility, and the skin.

I love a tasty gummy supplement, and if it helps safely stimulate cellular energy and promote the regeneration of healthy mitochondria (another thing I’ve loved since this chat with Marie years ago), I’m in. This supplement has excellent clinical studies to support it, and it also meets the highest standards for safety. I could be imagining things, but I do feel that it has a positive impact on my energy levels; given how important mitophagy becomes as you age, I’d probably take it even if I didn’t notice that.

I’d normally sell something I love this much at Ayla, but they have an excellent subscription program that we can’t match. Instead, you can get a 20% discount if you buy it on their site here.

A new supplement I’m trying, which I also love

Dr. Mary Claire Haver is seemingly everywhere, and I have to admit that when she first announced her supplement line, I might have let slip the very slightest of eye rolls. But when I chatted with the reps at her booth about bone health and learned that their bone health supplement tasted like pink lemonade, I thought, “In!” (Almost as good as a tasty gummy.)

I find it delicious and appreciate the bone health benefits; so far, so good. I did not buy one of Dr. Mary Claire’s weighted vests, however, since the ten-pound lap puppy I usually end up carrying on walks is just about all I can handle.

Curious about what we skipped as we looked at the sponsor booths?

All the skincare…and all the skincare devices. (We have our own ideas about those things.)

Hope you found this helpful! Stay tuned for more exciting supplement info next week.