Recommended Reading: Increasing Healthspan and Lifespan

Are you reaching middle-age or old age and thinking you’d like to be healthier and live longer? Are you willing to make time to learn how to live a longer, happier and healthier life?

Here are a few tidbits from six fascinating books:

• Aging is a treatable disease.
• By 2030, disruptive medical advances will enable more prime years. Healthy living from 30-60 becomes extended to 30-90.
• Caregivers are much more likely to have shorter telomere length, thus are aging faster.
• One of the oldest medical texts is an Egyptian papyrus from circa 2500 BC. It is a “Recipe for Transforming an Old Man into a Youth.” Unfortunately, the recipe turns out to be a face cream made from fruit and mud, probably not all that different from the pomegranate-and-melon-and milk-infused anti-aging creams Americans spend an estimated eleventy-billion dollars on each year.
• A few days before his 39th birthday, Meb Keflezighi won the Boston Marathon. 

Outlive: The Science and Art of Longevity by Peter Attia with Bill Gifford (2023)

Initial book reviews of Dr. Peter Attia’s Outlive called it, just another recommendation for better diet and exercise. Perhaps that is why it took us a year to start reading it. Two days later, and once finished, we were inspired to write a much better Outlive book review. That’s because Outlive is about much more than diet and exercise. It is about life and what matters. It was co-written with Bill Gifford, author of NY Times bestseller, Spring Chicken: Stay Young Forever (or Die Trying). Gifford is a marvelous storyteller. 

Dr. Attia’s deeply touching life experiences combined with his thinking on medical and longevity practices are compelling. Readers are guided to reflect on their priorities and goals in life, balanced with healthcare tips to extend their time to achieve them.

There are some surprising twists and turns. Life is a work-in-progress, even for celebrity doctors who seem to have it all.

The Great Age Reboot, Cracking the Longevity Code for a Younger Tomorrow by Dr. Michael Roizen, Peter Linneman and Albert Ratner (2022)

Dr. Roizen is the Chief Wellness Officer of the Cleveland Clinic. His book covers how you can benefit from the trend to become “yold” or “young old”, meaning old in calendar years, but young in feeling, looks and function. The Great Age Reboot covers the coming advances and what actions you can take to extend your healthspan. Some insights include:

• By 2050, one quarter of the US population will be over 75 years old. This will fundamentally change lifestyles and society.
• The latest medical advances which have promise to heal and regenerate bodies. These include:
  • The AMBAR study showed that plasma exchange in humans with Alzheimer’s slows cognitive decline by 50%, by lowering pro-inflammatory proteins that increase with age.
  • Reprogramming the methylation process allows cells to repair or replace themselves, including in current human trials to restore vision. (Of note, The Great Age Reboot is printed in large font with wide spacing, making it an easy read on your eyes.)
  • 10,000 diseases are caused by a single error in a single gene. In theory, every one of them can be treated now with gene editing.
  • Advancements in mitochondrial restoration and rebooting show we can make our cells young-acting again.
• To live longer and healthier, build a team of trusted and knowledgeable health advisors to help you make the best medical decisions using the latest science.
• Your lifestyle decisions effect 80% of the genes that your body turns on. Make those wisely. You can self-engineer how your body works.

Most of this book is helpful, especially the chapters on how to self-engineer your body and achieve the Great Age Reboot. However, Dr. Roizen has a position on taking daily aspirin, which can be dangerous if not taken consistently for life. If you are taking aspirin daily, do not stop.

Lifespan: Why We Age and Why We Don’t Have To by David Sinclair and Matthew LaPlante (2019)

Sinclair writes, “Once people begin to accept that aging is not an inevitable part of life, will they take better care of themselves?” He believes so, especially once people see aging as a treatable disease.

Sinclair’s storytelling and scientific explanations are riveting, especially his discussion on sirtuins which address DNA stability, DNA repair, cell survivability, metabolism and cell-to-cell communication. When sirtuins are engaged on DNA repair, the rest of their epigenetic functioning is temporarily disabled. During this time, their cells age. Scientists have tested doubling the amount of sirtuins. The results allowed cells to repair DNA and not age.

Sirtuins can be boosted through dietary supplements such as Nicotinamide Riboside (NR). Recent clinical trial results have affirmed that NR is safe. If you are going to read one book this holiday season or give a book as a gift to your friends and family, this should be it. With a longer healthier life, you want your friends and family to be there with you, too.

The Telomere Effect, a Revolutionary Approach to Living Younger, Healthier, Longer by Elizabeth Blackburn and Elissa Epel (2017)

Telomeres protect the end of your chromosome from deterioration or from fusion with neighboring chromosomes. When your telomeres become too short, your cells either die or become senescent, causing inflammation in your body. This becomes a vicious cycle as innocent bystander cells are damaged, then move to senescence and expand the inflammation. Immunosenescence occurs with aging and is likely your cause of death if you avoid heart attacks, cancer and strokes.

The Telomere Effect covers Blackburn’s extensive research into which lifestyle behaviors cause telomeres to shorten. There are some surprising conclusions. Fortunately, living a healthy lifestyle can repair and lengthen your telomeres. For those who are curious about their telomere length, it can be tested as part of Setting Your Health Baseline by a company called LifeLength.  

Spring Chicken, Stay Young Forever (or Die Trying) by Bill Gifford (2016)

“When I went in for my physical exam, somewhere around forty-three, I learned that I mysteriously gained fifteen pounds and my cholesterol levels now approximated those of chocolate milk. For the first time ever, I had the beginnings of a beer belly, which shouldn’t have been surprising since I love beer, but it bummed me out nonetheless. All of this my doctor chalked up to ‘normal aging.’ She smiled as she said it, as if it were nothing to worry about and no reason to take action.”

Bill Gifford chose otherwise, and his unique and funny personal experience pursuing anti-aging is delightful. If you are a fan of Bill Bryson books, this is comparable. If you resemble Bill Gifford at age forty-three, this is a must read.

Play On, The New Science of Elite Performance at Any Age by Jeff Bercovici (2018)

Are you an athlete who wants to compete well beyond your peak athletic prime years? Are you curious how elite athletes like Tom Brady, Serena Williams, Carli Lloyd, and LeBron James continue to excel beyond the expected age for the decline of professional athletes? 

Similar to Bill Gifford, Jeff Bercovici undertook a journey to find out what science and strategies were extending the careers of aging elite athletes. He puts himself through their training with some hilarious results.

Although Bercovici is not able to uncover their full set of secrets, there is enough to make this worthwhile reading.

What Makes Olga Run: The Mystery of the 90-Something Year Old Track Star, and What She Can Teach Us About Living Longer, Happier Lives  by Bruce Grierson (2015)

Olga Kotelko set 34 age-group world records in track and field events. Grierson and Kotelko explore the physical and emotional factors which allow for athletic success and happiness later in life. Olga’s personal story is uplifting. She’s charming and inspirational. Her nine rules for a long productive life make sense.