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Weekly · Sunday Morning

Five longevity claims.
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Rapamycin extends mouse lifespan 9–14%
NAD+ precursors reverse aging in humans
Blue-light glasses improve sleep quality
Walking 10 min after meals blunts glucose
Verdict change — caffeine half-life downgraded

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The Science Behind Why We Age | Lifespan with Dr. David Sinclair #1 — Whalespan

Content›Video›The Science Behind Why We Ag…

The Science Behind Why We Age | Lifespan with Dr. David Sinclair #1

David Sinclair1h 3m · 2022-01-05

Claims Made

131

Claims Supported

126

Support Rate

96%

Support rate

126 of 131 claims supported

126 supported5 partial / not

Claims from this content

97

✓Well SupportedInside Tracker's platform helps users understand blood test data and provides protocols to adjust numbers into ideal ranges.✓Well SupportedAthletic Greens is a drink containing vitamins, minerals, probiotics, and adaptogens designed to meet foundational nutritional needs and aid recovery from stress.✓Well SupportedInside Tracker analyzes blood and DNA data to provide personalized nutrition, supplementation, and lifestyle recommendations for optimizing health markers.✓Well SupportedLevels, a program utilizing a continuous glucose monitor (CGM), provides real-time feedback on how foods, activities, and sleep impact health and blood glucose levels.Well Supported

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Sinclair on rapamycin alternatives

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A. Volkovreader

4h

Bookmarking — the dossier-vs-overview split is the right call. Most of the time I want overview; sometimes I want receipts.

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N. Park

2d

Would love a "what would change this verdict" RSS feed. Sign me up if it exists.

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The Information Theory of Aging posits that aging is caused by the deregulation of genes over time.

✓Well SupportedVitamin K2 is important for calcium regulation and cardiovascular health.

✓Well SupportedPharmacologic inhibition of mTOR with rapamycin or its analogs shows promise for lifespan and healthspan improvement, even when initiated late in life.

✓Well SupportedUsing a CGM and associated programs can help optimize food combinations, exercise, and sleep schedules for better blood glucose control and energy levels.

✓Well SupportedTargeting the biology of aging aims to improve both healthspan and lifespan simultaneously.

✓Well SupportedRapamycin's life-extending effects have been replicated across various model systems, including yeast, fruit flies, and worms.

✓Well SupportedSteve Horvath's epigenetic clock can accurately predict biological age within +/- 4 years with 96% accuracy.

✓Well SupportedDiabetic patients taking metformin have lower all-cause and cause-specific mortality compared to diabetics not taking metformin.

✓Well SupportedUsing monitoring tools like InsideTracker allows for tracking and correcting health metrics.

✓Well SupportedBiological aging is a malleable process for which interventions are being determined.

✓Well SupportedMonitoring blood glucose with a continuous glucose monitor (CGM) and an app like Levels allows individuals to see how different foods impact their blood sugar levels.

✓Well SupportedLongevity genes and pathways, such as sirtuins and mTOR, communicate with each other.

✓Well SupportedDavid Sinclair has been drinking Athletic Greens daily for several years to cover nutritional bases, especially when traveling or when his diet is suboptimal.

✓Well SupportedLifestyle choices can influence the rate of aging and disease likelihood.

✓Well SupportedThe survival circuit is controlled by mTOR, AMPK, and sirtuins.

✓Well SupportedTo activate longevity genes, the body needs to be tricked into thinking it is under threat of survival without causing damage.

✓Well SupportedAging can be controlled, slowed, and reversed.

✓Well SupportedDavid Sinclair's personal CGM data showed that white rice, toast, and grapes caused significant blood sugar spikes and crashes, while potatoes did not.

✓Well SupportedMetformin is a very safe drug, available affordably in many parts of the world, and is a frontline therapy for Type 2 diabetes.

✓Well SupportedMetformin has been shown to extend lifespan and improve healthspan in worms and mice.

✓Well SupportedFasting promotes sirtuin activity, which aids in NAD recycling via AMPK, leading to a better circadian profile.

✓Well SupportedHemoglobin A1C thresholds for diabetes classification are typically >65 for diabetic, 57-64 for pre-diabetic, and <57 for normal.

✓Well SupportedSirtuin genes can be activated by fasting, heat exposure, cold exposure, and exercise.

✓Well SupportedThe fight against aging is equivalent to fighting the diseases associated with aging, aiming for prevention, cessation, and reversal.

◐Partially SupportedReversing the age of the human brain could lead to the disappearance of Alzheimer's and other brain diseases, and potentially restore lost memories.

◐Partially SupportedX differentiation is a new science not typically found in textbooks as a cause of aging.

✓Well SupportedHumans can engineer themselves to live longer by not waiting for evolutionary processes.

✓Well SupportedInexpensive longevity interventions include exercising outdoors, mindful eating, and improving sleep hygiene.

◐Partially SupportedTreating aging as a medical condition can lead to more effective interventions and improved health outcomes.

✓Well SupportedActivating the AMPK gene increased the lifespan of flies by 30%.

✓Well SupportedGenetic inhibition of mTOR in model systems recapitulates the longevity and healthspan benefits seen with rapamycin.

✓Well SupportedFasting activates mechanisms, such as Sirtuins, that improve DNA repair and gene silencing, potentially slowing the aging clock.

✓Well SupportedThe SIR2 gene (sirtuin) acts as a regulator that keeps genes silent to maintain cellular health and division.

◐Partially SupportedType 2 diabetes and Alzheimer's disease share an underlying process driven by X differentiation and aging.

✓Well SupportedUnderstanding and preventing the aging process is crucial, rather than just focusing on death.

✓Well SupportedA small amount of stress on the body can induce a defensive mode, a concept known as hormesis.

◐Partially SupportedA 120-participant clinical trial has been initiated to explore the age-delaying effects of metformin in humans.

✓Well SupportedRodents like the field mouse (living 2-3 years) and the naked mole rat (living ~30 years) show a lifespan difference of over 10-fold.

◐Partially SupportedThe current era of medical history is as significant as the advent of antibiotics and vaccines due to emerging longevity science.

◐Partially SupportedSignificant advancements in understanding and controlling aging have occurred since the publication of 'Lifespan'.

◐Partially SupportedRepeated treatments over more than a year reduced biological age based on blood clocks even further, with individuals reportedly going back a decade.

◐Partially SupportedScientists have identified core genes shared across species that drive aging, and suppressing them can extend lifespan.

◐Partially SupportedThe specific packaging of DNA is cell-type specific and is inherited, ensuring that cells maintain their identity (e.g., a brain cell remains a brain cell).

◐Partially SupportedGreg Fahy's trials show a potential for a couple of years of age reversal within 12 months of treatment using a combination of three factors.

◐Partially SupportedWhales possess multiple copies of longevity genes that protect the body and are activated by adversity.

✓Well SupportedDNA packaging around histone proteins determines gene accessibility and expression.

◐Partially SupportedHeart disease can be caused by aging, which can be accelerated by disrupting the epigenome and causing X-differentiation.

◐Partially SupportedAging involves the loss of specific DNA packaging, leading to the unspooling of DNA and the inappropriate activation of genes.

◐Partially SupportedMetformin is an AMPK activator used for decades to lower glucose levels in type two diabetics and is relatively safe.

◐Partially SupportedThe decreasing cost of biological age measurement will enable individuals to monitor their health and the effectiveness of lifestyle choices on aging.

◐Partially SupportedAMPK acts as a central regulator of the body's defenses by down-regulating mTOR and activating longevity genes in response to low energy.

◐Partially SupportedThe cost of reading DNA methylation patterns has decreased significantly and may become very low.

◐Partially SupportedIndividuals with poor lifestyle choices have an older biological age and a higher risk of premature death.

◐Partially SupportedEpigenetics controls gene packaging within a cell.

◐Partially SupportedThere is no inherent biological reason why humans cannot live as long as other long-lived species in the animal kingdom.

◐Partially SupportedAging prevention is a continuous process that begins even before birth and occurs throughout one's entire lifespan.

◐Partially SupportedHarnessing protective survival genes like mTOR, AMPK, and sirtuins can aid in preventing and treating diseases throughout life.

◐Partially SupportedThe X differentiation process is the primary driver of aging and age-related diseases and can be slowed or reversed by optimizing middle layer regulators.

◐Partially SupportedExercise activates sirtuin genes.

◐Partially SupportedAging is a fundamental process caused by the unspooling of genes, leading to diseases of old age.

◐Partially SupportedActivating longevity genes like sirtuins can slow and reverse cellular X-differentiation, improving cell function.

◐Partially SupportedAging is not a mandatory biological law and the body can be reset to a younger state.

◐Partially SupportedHumanity is at a turning point where we can control our biology to live decades longer and healthier lives.

◐Partially SupportedAchieving an additional 30 years of healthy life allows for new career opportunities, travel, educating great-grandchildren, and overall enjoyment.

◐Partially SupportedHumans are molecularly similar to whales, separated by only 40 million years, suggesting humans could potentially live as long as whales.

◐Partially SupportedGenes are accessed and read by the cell in small segments at a time, similar to how information is read from a cassette tape.

◐Partially SupportedLong-lived species often inhabit adverse environments, which can activate defenses against aging through hormesis.

◐Partially SupportedDavid Sinclair's book 'Superlative: The Biology of Extremes' discusses animals that provide insights into optimizing human biology.

◐Partially SupportedBowhead whales can live for over 200 years.

◐Partially SupportedAging biology suggests that aging is not inevitable.

◐Partially SupportedSirtuins are a family of seven genes linked to aging that regulate longevity across multiple species, including humans.

◐Partially SupportedAging is conserved across species, making it potentially easier to solve than cancer or heart disease.

◐Partially SupportedHealth and long-term survival can be improved at any age by applying lessons learned from aging research.

✕Not SupportedCommonly held beliefs about longevity, such as telomeres and antioxidants, are myths that have little impact.

◐Partially SupportedSlowing down the aging process can be achieved through practical daily actions.

✕Not SupportedCurrent medicine often treats specific diseases after they occur, ignoring the underlying aging process.

◐Partially SupportedActivating AMPK is desirable for longevity and can be achieved through fasting or eating less.

◐Partially SupportedFasting activates AMPK, which increases insulin sensitivity and mitochondrial energy production.

◐Partially SupportedApproximately 90% of Alzheimer's disease is caused by the aging process.

◐Partially SupportedIn Alzheimer's brains, cells can be observed losing their identity, a phenomenon also seen in normal aging.

◐Partially SupportedThe cells lining blood vessels that transport glucose out of the bloodstream lose function with aging, obesity, and lack of exercise, leading to prolonged high blood sugar.

◐Partially SupportedThe GLUT4 glucose transporter's function, essential for glucose uptake, declines with aging and negative lifestyle factors.

◐Partially SupportedHigh blood sugar levels are toxic and predispose individuals to diseases such as heart disease, frailty, and dementia.

◐Partially SupportedAnimals that do not face significant predation can invest energy into building longer-lasting bodies and reproduce more slowly.

◐Partially SupportedApproximately 20,000 different genes are expressed in a cell, with each cell expressing a unique combination.

◐Partially SupportedMany doctor recommendations for longevity and health likely act through sirtuin genes.

◐Partially SupportedAdversity, as long as it does not cause harm, can promote health and longevity.

◐Partially SupportedBristlecone pines can live for approximately 5,000 years.

◐Partially SupportedType 2 diabetes involves the failure to effectively move glucose from the bloodstream into muscles and the brain, leading to high blood sugar and potential systemic damage.

◐Partially SupportedRapamycin protects the heart in dogs and is being tested for lifespan extension.

◐Partially SupportedA triple treatment of DHEA, metformin, and growth hormone rebuilt the thymus and reversed biological age by two and a half years in a study.

◐Partially SupportedMetformin activates AMPK, potentially resetting aging processes by reversing X-differentiation and activating longevity genes like sirtuins.

◐Partially SupportedDiet and exercise are consistent recommendations from doctors for longevity and health.