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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…

#271 – AMA #51: Understanding and improving your metabolic health

Zone 2 output is arguably the most important functional test we have of metabolic health.” —Peter Attia

Can a peptide found in bee stings offer hope for treatment-resistant breast cancers?

Melittin, the main component of honeybee venom, has shown promise as a basis for chemotherapeutic drugs to combat treatment-resistant breast cancer

Improving memory with transcranial neuromodulation

Research shows that noninvasive neuromodulation can improve performance in memory tasks. Is this technique simply a research tool, or is it a therapy of the future?

#267 ‒ The latest in cancer therapeutics, diagnostics, and early detection | Keith Flaherty, M.D.

Early detection is going to allow our same toolbox of drugs to be massively more effective.” —Keith Flaherty

Successful, early results using CAR T cells to treat an autoimmune disease

Engineered T cells “reboot”  the immune system by depleting B cells and autoantibodies

Silencing the alarm on aspartame and cancer

Last month, the International Agency for Research on Cancer designated the low-calorie sweetener aspartame as “possibly carcinogenic,” quickly leading to concern, confusion, and criticism.

Can treating hearing loss improve cognitive trajectories and reduce dementia risk?

Age-related hearing loss is very common and has long been known to correlate strongly with cognitive decline. A just-published randomized trial sought to evaluate causality in this association. What do we know now?

#262 – AMA #49: Heart rate recovery, strength training, rucking, kidney function, and brain health

[Heart rate recovery] is one of the metrics that we should care about just as we care about VO2 max and just as we care about resting heart rate.” —Peter Attia

A case study on the importance of taking charge of one’s own health

The personal story of a podcast listener who sought to gain a better picture of his cardiovascular health – and who saved his own life as a result.

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