Patients often tell me they would like to live as long as they reasonably can, provided they do not suffer cognitive decline. More often than not, people care less about how long they live and more about how well they live, specifically as it pertains to their brain.
Anyone who has seen a relative suffer from a neurodegenerative disease – such as dementia or Alzheimer’s disease – can no doubt relate to the debilitating nature of these conditions. Unlike heart disease and cancer, which kill directly, the fatal impact of neurodegenerative diseases is often indirect. While much is still unknown, data suggest that there are indeed things that can be done to ward off one’s risk of developing a neurodegenerative disease.
Below is a collection of past articles and podcasts exploring such tactics. My hope is that this content can serve as helpful resources to dive deeper into this topic as well as support your ongoing longevity journey.
“We have 300 different forms of monogenic mitochondrial diseases. . .and these are terrible diseases and we need therapies for them. . .but it’s also our hope that studying some of them will provide insights into the common form of aging as well.” —Vamsi Mootha
“[Sleep] is like that master volume button on a mixing deck that you see in the studio. You can manipulate each one of those dials, or you can go to the far left and just move that one dial…and all of the other levers seem to move with it.” — Matthew Walker
“The [stress response] system has been serving vertebrates, doing a lot of help for them for an awful long time, and it’s only been a very recent modification to instead secrete [cortisol] in response to thinking about taxes.” —Robert Sapolsky
“I think that sleep may be one of the most significant lifestyle factors that determines your risk ratio for Alzheimer’s disease.” — Matthew Walker
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“We welcome the criticism and the discussion, that way we will all learn. We don’t claim to have the final answer, but we think that this book [Estrogen Matters] represents an important step forward in empowering women and helping them live longer and live better.” —Avrum Bluming
“Everybody goes through this cognitive decline. . .this is a reality. . .but it is possible to intervene before you get into the limbic system problems. . . and that’s going to make the biggest difference.” —Francisco Gonzalez-Lima
Perhaps a bigger takeaway from this article is the approach this particular group takes: a consortium from different fields converging on the problem is likely the right way to address a problem as daunting as Alzheimer’s disease.
“The idea that you can optimize a particular regiment to the goals of that unique patient is the foundation of what we call Health 3.0.” —Zubin Damania
Comments are welcomed and encouraged. The purpose of comments on our site is to expand knowledge, engage in thoughtful discussion, and learn more from readers.
Criticism and skepticism can be far more useful than praise and unflinching belief.
There’s an art and science to critical thinking and how to conduct yourself. There’s a multitude of fallacious appeals we could spell out, but a good rule of thumb is not to attack the person, attack the ideas. Don’t look for the flaws in the person, look for the flaws in the hypothesis. Let’s keep the brawling to movies depicting minor league hockey teams and political “news” shows.
Thank you for adding to the discussion.
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