About the Episode 🎙️
This is an episode of The Knowledge Project podcast with Shane Parrish interviewing Dr. David Sinclair, a professor of genetics at Harvard Medical School and an expert on longevity research. They discuss the aging process, lifestyle interventions to slow aging, and the prospects for reversing aging in the future.
Key Takeaways 💡
- (07:31) Aging is a loss of epigenetic information that controls which genes are turned on or off in cells, leading to tissue dysfunction and diseases.
- (13:28) Fasting, eating less protein, being exposed to heat/cold stress, and taking molecules like resveratrol can activate longevity genes and defenses that slow aging.
- (25:58) A Mediterranean diet rich in plant foods and low in animal products is associated with slower aging and longer lifespan across populations.
- (37:23) Exercise, even just losing your breath for 10 minutes a few times a week, along with weight training and flexibility exercises like yoga, is important for longevity.
- (39:44) Getting enough sleep is critical, as lack of sleep accelerates aging, but Sinclair has been able to offset this somewhat by taking NAD boosters like NMN.
- (52:14) Sinclair takes resveratrol, NMN, and athletic greens daily as supplements to activate longevity pathways and provide nutrients.
- (01:00:58) It's never too late to start interventions to slow aging, as studies show even reversing aging is possible in old animals using drugs.
- (01:12:45) Sinclair's work has identified genes that can reset the epigenetic clock and reverse aging, with human trials planned soon based on restoring vision in old mice.
- (01:26:30) While the current maximum lifespan is around 120 years, there is no biological limit, and combining optimal genes, lifestyle, supplements and future therapies could allow lifespans of 200+ years like bowhead whales.