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Preventing Chronic Disease

One of the foundational lessons we can take away from studying centenarians — those who have lived to the age of 100+ — is that if you want to live longer, you have to live longer without chronic disease, not live longer with chronic disease. Unfortunately, our current healthcare system is primarily geared toward helping you live longer once you develop chronic disease. This, of course, is the opposite of the approach I take with my patients. 

Over 80% of deaths in people over 50 who do not smoke can be grouped into 4 main categories, what I like to call the four horsemen of chronic disease. These are: (1) atherosclerotic disease (comprised of cardiovascular disease and cerebrovascular disease), (2) cancer, (3) neurodegenerative disease (Alzheimer’s disease being the most common), and (4) metabolic disease (a spectrum of everything from hyperinsulinemia to insulin resistance to fatty liver disease to type 2 diabetes).

We have five main longevity tactics at our disposal to affect our longevity: (1) exercise, (2) sleep, (3) nutrition, (4) medications & supplements, and (5) distress tolerance. Below is a collection of podcasts and articles discussing how we can use these tactics to mitigate, prevent, and reverse chronic disease.

Preventing Chronic Disease

Peter on the four horsemen of chronic disease

This audio clip is from AMA #14: What lab tests can (and cannot) inform us about our overall objective of…

Removing race as a risk factor for cardiovascular disease?

The AHA has announced a new “race-free” assessment tool, but eliminating this variable carries the potential to increase – rather than decrease – racial disparities in healthcare

#290 ‒ Liquid biopsies for early cancer detection, the role of epigenetics in aging, and the future of aging research | Alex Aravanis, M.D., Ph.D.

Age is your single biggest risk factor for cancer. The population over 50 is about a 10x increased risk relative to the population under 50.” —Alex Aravanis

#289 – AMA #56: Cancer screening: pros and cons, screening options, interpreting results, and more

“There has been a pretty clear and consistent benefit [to cancer screening] that has been demonstrated, and the exceptions I think have a pretty clear sense of why.” —Peter Attia

#286 ‒ Journal club with Andrew Huberman: the impact of light exposure on mental health and an immunotherapy breakthrough for cancer treatment

People spend 90% of their time indoors now. Their daytime environments are too dim, their nighttime environments are too bright.” —Andrew Huberman

Where a study on metformin and cardiovascular disease fell short – and what it can teach us

An investigation on metformin, diabetes, lipid biology, and cardiovascular disease offered little insight on any of these topics, but it illustrates common problems in scientific research

Targeting senescent cells for cognitive health

With the recent publication of the first clinical trial of senolytics for AD treatment, popular interest in these drugs has swelled, but is the excitement justified?

The futility of estimating changes to all-cause mortality from target cancer screening studies

Why a recent publication shouldn’t change your motivation to get screened for cancer

The MIND diet on trial: can diet choices impact cognitive health?

The results were lackluster, but a closer look leaves room for other explanations

Reassessing the relationship between alcohol intake and cardiovascular disease risk

Mendelian randomization offers clearer insights than epidemiology or randomized trials to date

Continuous glucose monitoring to improve health in non-diabetics

Individualizing blood glucose control and its benefits

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