The American Academy of Anti-Aging Medicine (A4M) is a United States registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that promotes the field of anti-aging medicine and trains and certifies physicians in this specialty. As of 2011, approximately 26,000 practitioners had been given certificates.[1] However, the field of anti-aging medicine is not recognized by established medical organizations, such as the American Board of Medical Specialties and the American Medical Association (AMA). In addition to certifying practitioners, the Academy's activities include lobbying, education of the public, and public relations. The A4M was founded in 1993 by Dr. Robert Goldman[disambiguation needed] and Dr. Ronald Klatz, osteopathic physicians,[2] and now has grown to 26,000 members from 110 countries. The organization sponsors several conferences, such as the Annual World Congress on Anti-Aging Medicine.[3]

Several of the anti-aging methods recommended by the Academy have wide support among experts in the field, such as exercise and a healthy diet, but others, such as hormone treatments, do not have support from a consensus of the wider medical community. Many scientists studying aging dissociate themselves from the claims of A4M,[4][5] and critics have accused the group of using misleading marketing to sell expensive and ineffective products.[6] In contrast, the Academy sees itself as acting within science, stating that it bases its ideas on mainstream scientific research, and arguing that its ideas challenge current medical practice.[7] The A4M's founders and merchants who promote products through the organization have been involved in several legal and professional disputes.

The activities of the A4M are controversial: in 2003 a commentary on the response of the scientific community to the promotion of anti-aging medicine noted that the activities of the A4M were seen as a threat to the credibility of serious scientific research on aging.[8] According to MSNBC, anti-aging advocates have responded to such criticism by describing it as censorship perpetrated by a conspiracy of the US government, notably the Food and Drug Administration, the AMA, and the mainstream media,[9] motivated by competing commercial interests.[8]Thomas Perls of the Boston University School of Medicine, a prominent critic of the organization, has stated that claims of censorship and suppression are a common theme in what he calls "anti-aging quackery".[10]

The Academy's website states that the goal of the A4M is the "advancement of technology to detect, prevent, and treat aging related disease and to promote research into methods to retard and optimize the human aging process."[3] The website also argues that the "disabilities associated with normal aging are caused by physiological dysfunction which in many cases are ameliorable to medical treatment" and states that such treatments could extend the normal human lifespan.[3] More simply, according to The New York Times, their co-founder and president Ronald Klatz stated that "We're not about growing old gracefully. We're about never growing old."[11] With Klatz being quoted in 2004 as stating that: [12]

We the leaders of the Anti-Aging movement will help to usher in a new modern age for humanity: The Ageless Society. There is a remedy for this apocalypse of aging, and this remedy comes just in time to save America. This remedy is the new science of Anti-Aging Medicine represented by the American Academy of Anti-Aging Medicine.

The A4M believe that an "anti-aging transformation" can be produced by a combination of interventions, which include hormones, antioxidants, lifestyle modifications and exercise.[13] A 2002 presentation produced by Klatz highlights many widely recommended interventions to maintain health in old age, such as staying slim, avoiding smoking, regular exercise, maintaining an active social and sex life, continued mental stimulation, avoiding stress, a healthy diet, and moderate alcohol consumption. The presentation also recommends consuming antioxidant supplements, and avoiding tap water, which it describes as "dangerous" due to it being contaminated with toxic chemicals.[14] The A4M argues that the application of this set of interventions can produce "practical immortality", which are human lifespans in excess of 150 years, and predict future lifespans ranging up to 200 years old before the year 3000.[15] Writing in 2006, Klatz predicted that such dramatic increases in lifespan will be produced by emerging technologies such as nanotechnology or stem cell therapy, which he states "shows ubiquitous promise for everything from stroke to spinal cord injury."[16] With the discovery of such future technologies, Klatz believes that "Humankind will evolve toward an Ageless Society, in which we all experience boundless physical and mental vitality."[17]

Writing in the 2001 issue of the journal Generations, historian Carole Haber of the University of Delaware, states that Klatz' aspirations and the rhetoric of the A4M "reflect well-worn ideas and the often-enunciated hopes of the past", drawing parallels with the ideas of the 19th century physiologists Charles-douard Brown-Squard, Serge Voronoff and Eugen Steinach. Haber states that the current resurgence of these ideas may be due to their appeal to the aging Baby Boom Generation, in a culture that is focused on the ideal of youth.[18] Haber has also discussed the strong continuities within the philosophy of the anti-aging movement, writing that "For Steinach and Voronoff, as for the members of the A4M, old age was a "grotesque" disease that could be scientifically eradicated through the correct combination of hormones, diet, and surgery."[19]

The chairman of the A4M is Robert Goldman and the president is Ronald Klatz. The senior vice president is Joseph Maroon of the University of Pittsburgh and Nicholas DiNubile of the University of Pennsylvania is the vice president.[20] The Academy states that it has over 26,000 members from 110 countries, and that this membership is made up of physicians, scientists, researchers, health practitioners and members of the public.[21] In 2007, the organization reported just over seven million dollars in assets.[22] However, a 2006 review of anti-aging medicine notes that of the researchers who are interested in this topic, the "vast majority dissociate themselves from the A4M."[4] The Los Angeles Times states that "Many physicians, researchers and scientists, delving into the physiological aspects of human aging, view the Academy's activities with disdain, saying that the organization is an inappropriate blend of scientific and commercial interests."[5]

The main activity of the A4M is outreach, education, and advocacy for anti-aging medicine. It does this through publications, on-line activity and sponsoring conferences: such as the "World Anti-Aging Congress and Exposition" and the "Annual World Congress on Anti-Aging Medicine".[3][5] According to a 2008 A4M press release, "The World Congress is undisputed global gathering of international industry leaders" and quotes Klatz as stating, "our Annual Congress Sessions are regarded as the gold standard for physician education in advanced preventive medicine."[23] Some of these conferences are in conjunction with an organization called the "World Anti-Aging Academy of Medicine", which is an umbrella group for several national anti-aging organizations that is also headed by Goldman.[24] The LA Times, reporting from the 2004 annual conference of the A4A at Las Vegas, stated that this conference presented a mix of "scientific and technical presentations" and exhibitors selling "wrinkle creams, hair-growing potions, sexual enhancement pills and hormone treatments".[5] In a 2008 press release about the Annual World Congress, the A4M stated that:[23]

The physicians of A4M, along with the advocacy of aging intervention and biomedical research, have brought millions of new consumers to the realization that aging is not inevitable. Thanks in large part to these combined efforts, anti-aging medicine and regenerative biomedical technology is a $96.89 billion global industry. The Annual World Congress on Anti-Aging bundles this rapid momentum into a global marketplace of ideas, suppliers and solutions, enabling professionals to: connect with their peers on the latest hot-button issues; source cutting edge products; learn about the latest advancements and technologies; and get ahead of their competition.

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