Category Archives: Human Longevity

Peter Thiel once famously said, "death is a problem that can be solved." Jeff Bezos seems to agree.

The world's richest man this week threw more money behind an obsession among some billionaires: the quest to defeat aging. Bezos' horse in the race is Altos Labs, a promising young start-up trying to reverse aging by reprogramming human cells. But his investing track record in the area leaves a lot to be desired.

Altos is banking on biological reprogramming, a technology that rejuvenates cells in a lab, which experts think could eventually help revitalize entire bodies.

The firm emerged out of a series of three-year, $3 million grants to longevity researchers by Yuri Milner, another middle-aged billionaire. When it became evident that a dedicated, well-funded start-up could pursue research more efficiently, Altos was born in the spring of 2021. And the company hasn't stopped growing since, poaching a who's who of the world's top longevity scientists:

Crowded Field: Despite Altos' distinguished personnel and adequate resources, many funded start-ups are already developing reprogramming technology, including Life Biosciences, Turn Biotechnologies, AgeX Therapeutics, and Shift Bioscience. None, however, have thus far produced treatments that advanced to human clinical trials.

Bad Bets: The track record of billionaire-funded firms with lofty goals for human longevity isn't particularly stellar. Bezos and Thiel previously backed Unity Biotechnology, which last year failed its first major study, canceled its main anti-aging program, laid off 30% of its staff, and shifted its focus to ophthalmology and neurology.

Meanwhile, Alphabet's longevity science subsidiary Calico Labs made headlines in 2013 when, similar to Altos, the firm hired elite scientists and lavished them with enormous research budgets. So far, Calico has produced no major breakthroughs and two of its top scientists jumped ship for greener pastures.

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Jeff Bezos Ups His Investment in Immortality - The Motley Fool

In a letter to The New England Journal of Medicine, publishing online September 1, 2021, an interdisciplinary team of physicians and public health experts at University of California San Diego measured the effectiveness of COVID-19 mRNA vaccines among health workers at UC San Diego Health, most notably during the emergence of the highly transmissible delta virus variant and coincident with the end of the states mask mandate, allowing fully vaccinated persons to forgo face coverings in most places.

The letters authors report that the effectiveness of both the Pfizer and Moderna mRNA COVID-19 vaccines significantly waned over time. Both vaccines were granted emergency use authorization by the Food and Drug Administration in December 2020, with vaccinations of the UC San Diego Health work force beginning the same month for health care workers with direct, patient-facing duties.

In the letter, the authors note that from March through June 2021 vaccine effectiveness against symptomatic infection was estimated to exceed 90 percent; by July, however, it had fallen to approximately 65 percent.

The decline in effectiveness is not entirely surprising, said co-senior author Francesca Torriani, MD, professor of clinical medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases and Global Public Health in the UC San Diego School of Medicine and program director of Infection Prevention and Clinical Epidemiology at UC San Diego Health.

Waning effectiveness over time, combined with the more contagious delta variant and the end of masking mandates, have boosted cases of COVID-19 among fully vaccinated health workers.

Clinical trial data suggested decreased effectiveness would occur several months after full vaccination, but our findings indicate that confronted by the delta variant, vaccine effectiveness for mildly symptomatic disease was considerably lower and waned six to eight months after completing vaccination.

UC San Diego Health, with a work force of approximately 19,000, operates a robust SARS-CoV-2 testing program. If an employee reports even one mild symptom of COVID-19 during daily screening or an identified exposure, a test is triggered.

Then and now, UC San Diego Health has maintained rigorous, mandatory masking and transmission mitigation measures throughout its hospitals and clinical facilities. Diagnosed positive cases among health workers have universally been identified as community acquired.

In December 2020, workers at UC San Diego Health, like the population overall, began experiencing a surge of SARS-CoV-2 infections, the virus that causes COVID-19.

The situation improved significantly after UC San Diego Health began to inoculate employees using the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines. By March 2021, 76 percent of workers were fully vaccinated, rising to 83 percent by July 2021.

Concomitant with increased vaccination coverage was a decline between March and June in the number of workers reporting at least one symptom of COVID-19 and a positive PCR test. That number declined to fewer than 30 employees per month.

In July 2021, however, cases among this highly vaccinated population began to rise again, coincident with the emerging dominance of the delta variant in San Diego and the ending of Californias masking mandate on June 15. By July, 125 workers had been diagnosed with SARS-CoV-2 and unlike in previous months when approximately 20 percent of these cases involved vaccinated workers, the percentage had risen to 75 percent.

Notably, the vaccines still provide significant protection from severe infection outcomes, such as hospitalization and death. Among the UC San Diego Health employee cases documented, no hospitalizations were reported in vaccinated individuals and only one among unvaccinated persons.

Unlike what was experienced with other variants, with the delta variant parents are frequently getting infected by their young children, ages 5 to 11, said co-first author Lucy Horton, MD, MPH, an assistant professor of medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases and director of the UC San Diego Health COVID-19 case investigation and contact tracing team. Unvaccinated people are seven times more likely to test positive for COVID-19 than those who are fully vaccinated. More importantly, while children rarely need medical attention, unvaccinated adults are 32 times more likely to require hospitalization compared to those who are fully vaccinated.

Vaccine effectiveness was linked to the passage of time. For workers diagnosed in July, those who became fully vaccinated in January and February had higher infection rates than those vaccinated later in March through May. The infection rate among unvaccinated persons has remained consistently higher than for any vaccinated group, although the difference in rates between the two groups has decreased over time.

The dramatic change in vaccine effectiveness from June to July is likely due to a combination of factors, said co-author Nancy Binkin, MD, MPH, professor of epidemiology in the UC San Diego School of Medicine and Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Human Longevity Science. Its the emergence of the delta variant and waning immunity over time, compounded by the end of broad masking requirements and the resulting greater exposure risk throughout the community.

Co-senior author Shira Abeles, MD, an assistant professor of medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases who has led the COVID-19 vaccination effort at UC San Diego Health, said the findings underscore the importance of rapidly reinstating key interventions, such as indoor masking and intensive testing strategies, plus continuing efforts to boost vaccination rates.

Similar findings are being reported in other settings in the U.S. and internationally, and it is likely that booster doses will be necessary.

Co-authors include: Jocelyn Keehner (co-first author), Louise C. Laurent, David Pride and Christopher A. Longhurst, all at UC San Diego.

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With Time and Without Masks, COVID-19 Vaccines Wane in Protection - UC San Diego Health

To the editor:

Re: Texas abortion legislation is thoroughly un-American, by The Chicago Tribune editorial board (editorial, Sept. 6):

I guess I missed the occasion when terminating the life of an unborn child, who has no say in whether to live or not, became a positive attribute in America for American citizens to be proud of. WOW!

So now weve graduated to the point that not only do we fight to protect the right to decide if an unborn child should be allowed to live, we also fight for the right to force every American citizen to take the jab which, due to the lack of any long-term studies having been completed, could potentially and detrimentally have an effect on our future health and life expectancy.

After all, is it not the least bit plausible that taking the jab might ultimately prove to be an unwise decision, that could negatively affect our health and longevity given those individuals who agreed to be vaxed and then experienced negative side effects. If something, like the COVID-19 vaccine is so beneficial to protecting our health, why/how would it produce negative side effects in anyone who agreed to take the shot?

Unfortunately, only time will tell if taking the jab actually enhances our health or results in having an opposite impact on it.

Have we, as a Christian nation, fallen so far that human life has become an expendable commodity to be managed and controlled? If so, may God have mercy on all of us. Well need it!

Richard Kieltyka

North Attleboro

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Human life is not an expendable commodity | Letters To Editor | thesunchronicle.com - The Sun Chronicle

Salmon fish diet  |  Photo Credit: iStock Images

Most of us have heard about the goodness of the Mediterranean diet. Based on the traditional cuisines of Greece, Italy and other countries that border the Mediterranean Sea, this way of eating is based on plant-based foods, such as whole grains, vegetables, legumes, fruits, nuts, seeds, herbs and spices, olive oil is the main source of added fat and fish and seafood instead of red meat. Fish, seafood, dairy and poultry are included in moderation. Red meat and sweets are eaten only occasionally.

In a 2013 study, Johns Hopkins researchers and others found that a Mediterranean-style diet combined with regular exercise, a healthy weight, and not smoking protected against earlyheart disease, slowed the build-up of plaque in artery walls, and reduced the risk for early death by 80 per cent.

According to the Mayo Clinic website, interest in the diet began in the 1950s when it was noted that heart disease was not as common in Mediterranean countries as it was in the US. Since then, numerous studies have confirmed that the Mediterranean diet helps prevent heart disease and stroke.

Fish is appreciated for the Omega-3 fatty acids - which are healthy polyunsaturated fats that the body uses to build brain-cell membranes. Though our body needs these essential fats, it cant make them on its own.

Instead, a diet rich in omega-3sfound in fatty fish, like salmon, tuna and mackerel, helps protect against heart disease, stroke, cancer and inflammatory diseases. Omega-3 fatty acids also help decrease triglycerides, reduce blood clotting, and lower the risk of stroke and heart failure. This nutritious type of fish is not only rich in omega-3 fatty acids, but also other essential nutrients. Rich in vitamin B12, salmon is wonderful for hair and skin health.

With so many virtues, the salmon fish diet almost becomes a superfood diet. When vital organs like the heart, brain, bones, muscles benefit, it also leads to longevity. Retention of cognitive abilities till ripe old age enhances the quality of life during ageing. That is why Salmon is the best fish diet for heart, brain, and longevity.

Disclaimer: Tips and suggestions mentioned in the article are for general information purposes only and should not be construed as professional medical advice. Always consult your doctor or a professional healthcare provider if you have any specific questions about any medical matter.

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Seeking heart health, brain power, and longevity? Here's why Salmon is the best fish diet for you - Times Now

Researchers continue to deepen our understanding of how the body interacts with its environment. This interplay between what happens internally and externally is key to prolonging one's lifespan. It underlines the importance of leading a healthy lifestyle, for example. New research builds on this understanding by demonstrating the longevity benefits associated with improving the health of your gut microbiota.

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"What is remarkable about the findings is that the elderly mice that received a fecal microbiota transplantation from young mice showed a reversal of ageing-associated brain changes," explained Doctor Vincent Pedre, Medical Director of Pedre Integrative Health and author of the bestselling book, HAPPY GUTThe Cleansing Program To Help You Lose Weight, Gain Energy and Eliminate Pain."?

He continued: "They found improvements in brain immunity as well as the production of messenger molecules from the brain's control centre, known as the hippocampus.

"This translated into improvements in cognitive behaviour in the elderly mice."

The benefits of improving gut health extend to humans.

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A recently published study in Nature showed that centenarians have a unique gut microbiome capable of producing novel secondary bile acids (metabolites from our own bile) that prevent the growth of inflammatory intestinal pathogens, reported Doctor Pedre.

"Not all of these centenarians were living in multi-generational households, but the new research findings suggest that elderly living in multigenerational households can get exposed to the younger microbiome of their grandchildren, keeping their microbiome more fit."

"We know several ways to promote a healthy gut microbiome and keep inflammatory markers (which lead to aging) at bay," noted Doctor Pedre.

These include:

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Eating a healthy, balanced diet is an important part of maintaining good health, and can help you feel your best.

"This means eating a wide variety of foods in the right proportions, and consuming the right amount of food and drink to achieve and maintain a healthy body weight," explains the NHS.

The Eatwell Guide shows that to have a healthy, balanced diet, people should try to:

According to the NHS, starchy foods should make up just over a third of everything you eat. This means your meals should be based on these foods.

"Choose wholegrain or wholemeal varieties of starchy foods, such as brown rice, wholewheat pasta, and brown, wholemeal or higher fibre white bread."

As the health body notes, they contain more fibre, and usually more vitamins and minerals, than white varieties.

"Potatoes with the skins on are a great source of fibre and vitamins. For example, when having boiled potatoes or a jacket potato, eat the skin too."

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Doctor shares key tip that may 'reverse' brain decline and boost your life expectancy - Express

It has long been established that eating a healthy diet can extend your lifespan but research continues to establish the mechanisms that drive this beneficial effect. A Mediterranean-style diet has been consistently championed for its longevity benefits and a study published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) has posited a novel explanation for its impact.

Researchers investigated if a one-year Mediterranean-style diet intervention could alter the gut microbiota and reduce frailty.

The gut microbiota is increasingly recognised as an important regulator of host immunity and brain health.

The gut microbiota resides in the intestine and is home to the human body's largest population of microorganisms.

To gather their findings, researchers profiled the gut microbiota in 612 non-frail or pre-frail subjects across five European countries (UK, France, Netherlands, Italy and Poland) before and after the administration of a 12-month long Mediterranean diet intervention tailored to elderly subjects (NU-AGE diet).

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The NU-AGE diet emphasises greater intakes of whole grains, fruits, vegetables, low-fat dairy and cheese, fish, low-fat meat and poultry, nuts, and olive oil, the use of a vitamin D supplement (10 g) and lower intakes of alcohol, sodium and sweets.

The researchers found adherence to the diet was associated with specific microbiome alterations.

Adherence to the diet was "positively associated with several markers of lower frailty and improved cognitive function", the researchers wrote.

What's more, the dietary approach was negatively associated with inflammatory markers including C-reactive protein and interleukin-17, they said.DON'T MISSMichael Schumacher health:Jean Todt visits tragic F1 star[INSIGHT]Covid is surging and there is 'only' one vaccinated symptom[TIPS]Dementia: The 'first' symptom of dementia[ADVICE]

"Collectively, our findings support the feasibility of improving the habitual diet to modulate the gut microbiota which in turn has the potential to promote healthier ageing," the researchers concluded.

A Mediterranean diet incorporates the traditional healthy living habits of people from countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea, including France, Greece, Italy and Spain.

The Mediterranean diet varies by country and region, so it has a range of definitions.

But in general, it's high in vegetables, fruits, legumes, nuts, beans, cereals, grains, fish, and unsaturated fats such as olive oil. It usually includes a low intake of meat and dairy foods.

Exercise is also integral to longevity and should complement a healthy diet.

"Adults should do some type of physical activity every day. Exercise just once or twice a week can reduce the risk of heart disease or stroke," explains the NHS.

The health body continues: "Speak to your GP first if you have not exercised for some time, or if you have medical conditions or concerns.

"Make sure your activity and its intensity are appropriate for your fitness."

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How to live longer: The diet that promotes 'healthier ageing' within one year of intake - Daily Express

Crime & Justice, Economy & Trade, Global, Global Geopolitics, Headlines, Human Rights, Inequity, Labour, TerraViva United Nations

Opinion

Vladimir Popov Principal Researcher, Central Economics and Mathematics Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences, Ph.D.

BERLIN, Sep 6 2021 (IPS) - The main contradiction of the modern era, and indeed of all human history, is not between capitalism and socialism, and not even between authoritarianism and democracy, but between individualism and collectivism, between public and personal interests. Countries that are getting ahead in the economic race allow themselves the luxury of individualism, prioritizing human rights, which ultimately undermines their political and economic power and causes their decline and the rise of more collectivist civilizations. It is literally the story that is as old, as the world itself

Vladimir Popov

Asian values is the priority of the interests of the community (village, enterprise, nation, world community) over the interests of the individual. As a matter of fact, what is today called Asian values, before the 16th century Protestantism, was a universal principle of all mankind there was no primacy of the interests of the individual over the interests of society before that time.

Collectivist values are often juxtaposed to Western liberal values, which stress the primacy of human rights that cannot be alienated from the individual under any circumstances, even for the sake of achieving the highest public good. John Rawls, political philosopher and an authority on the issue, formulated the principle of precedence of democratic values and human rights: according to him, human rights, including political rights, are not subject to political bargaining or to the calculus of social interests. Defenders of Asian values, whose roots are often sought in Confucianism, believe that, in principle, the political rights of individuals can be sacrificed for the highest public good, for example, for the sake of achieving sustained high rates of growth and social equality.

Values, of course, is largely a vague and subjective concept. Economists like to operate with something more tangible objective and measurable categories, but there are those as well. Social harmony is based on low income and wealth inequality, which are perfectly measurable: in China and East Asia today it is lower than in other countries, if only the comparisons are made properly adjusted for country size and level of development. And oligarch-intensity (the ratio of the wealth of billionaires to GDP), which measures inequality at the very top of the property pyramid, is lower in China than in most other countries.

The share of the state in the economy (government consumption as a percentage of GDP, to be precise) is higher than in states with similar characteristics, the number of violations of law and order and criminal penalties (the crime rate, murder rate and incarceration rate) is lower1. There are other measurable objective indicators lifetime employment and unemployment rate, the ratio of bank credit to the stock market, concentration of control over corporations, etc. There are also differences in subjective preferencesmeasured by the World Value Survey and other polls the degree of trust in the government, the willingness to defend ones country, the importance of family ties, and so on2.

But the most important thing, of course, is the mass understanding that the country and society as a whole are more important than any individual, even the most important. For example, the one child policy, practiced in China since the beginning of reforms in 1979 and until recently, is traditionally considered in the West as a violation of the inalienable reproductive rights of citizens, but in China it was supported by the overwhelming majority of the population and did not raise questions.

Ask not what your country can do for you ask what you can do for your country, this famous phrase of John F. Kennedy made a strong impression in the United States and in the West, but not in China. As if it could be otherwise my Chinese friend plainly noticed.

Competition of civilizations

There was a time, when it seemed that the Wests bet on personal freedom and human rights was paying off as the West overtook all other civilizations both economically and militarily. The universal feeling was that the Rest could only imitate the West in order to achieve the same success. However, the rise of East Asia in the post-war period, and especially the rise of its central state China, makes one think that the end of history is postponed, and it is too early to end the debate on the competition of civilizations. China (and earlier other East Asian countries based on Chinese culture Japan, Korea, Taiwan, ASEAN countries) in the postwar period managed to raise growth rates to 7-10% and maintain these growth rates for several decades. As a result, East Asia in the second half of the 20th century became, in fact, the only large region that managed to narrow the gap in the levels of economic development with the West.

Neither Latin America, nor the Middle East, nor South Asia, nor Africa, nor the former USSR and Eastern Europe have succeeded in doing this. True, in the 1950s and 1970s, the USSR and Eastern Europe, as well as Latin America, narrowed the gap with the West. But then their model of import-substituting development ran into the dead end: Latin America after the debt crisis of the early 1980s experienced a lost decade, Eastern Europe in the 1990s had a transformational recession comparable only to the Great Depression of the 1930s. years.

As a matter of fact, only in East Asia there are countries that have been able to transform themselves from developing into developed Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Hong Kong. There are no other states in the world that have managed to catch up with the West due to high growth rates (and not due to higher prices for resources). The last two cases can be attributed to small scales these are cities, not countries, but there is no way to denounce thefirst three cases. Especially now, when China is following in the footsteps of these countries with a fifth of the worlds population.

The significance of this growth today is difficult to overestimate, and not only because China is the largest country in the world, but also because for the first time in modern history we are dealing with successful catch-up development based on illiberal, if not anti-liberal principles on Asian values , collectivist in their essence institutions. After the collapse of the USSR, the Chinese, or rather, East Asian, development model is gaining more and more adherents in developing countries from Brazil to Fiji. Geopolitics and military potential matter a great deal, of course, but in the end it will be the countries with the highest economic efficiency that will dominate. In the last analysis, productivity of labor is the most important, the principal thing for the victory of the new social system (Lenin).

Comparative economic and social dynamics during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020-21 is another proof of the advantages of the collectivist model, if such proof is still needed. In China, Japan, South Korea, there was practically no increase in mortality compared to the previous period (2015-19), and life expectancy did not decrease. Of the Western countries, only Australia, Iceland, New Zealand and Norway showed such a result, while in the United States the mortality rate increased roughly by 25% on an annual basis, life expectancy decreased by one and a half years from 78.8 in 2019 to 77.3 years in 2020. This year, 2021, life expectancy in the United States will probably decrease even more, while in China it will increase, so that China canovertake the United States in longevity.

And at the same time, China is leading in economic growth: GDP growth rates in 2020 only slowed down slightly (from 6% in 2019 to 2% in 2020; 8-9% is expected in 2021 to compensate for the previous slowdown), whereas in all other G-20 countries, except for Turkey, there was a drop in production, sometimes significant from 5 to 10% in 20203.

Forecast

Russia stands between East and West for almost its entire history. The modern Russian socio-economic model is partly liberal, but partly collectivist, especially after overcoming the chaos of the 90s.

Losing in the competition with the Chinese economic and social model in many ways, the West will probably try to create a united front of states, regardless of whether these states are liberal and democratic or not, to contain the rise of China and the proliferation of the collectivist model. It can be assumed that all countries that the West considers today authoritarian, from Venezuela to North Korea, will receive an indulgence for the alleged violations of human rights and democracy if only they join the anti-Chinese coalition. The West will probably try to seduce Russia with the lifting of sanctions and even the possibility of joining the Western club of civilized countries.

If Russia and other countries that the West considers authoritarian agree to such a compromise, the rise of China and the spread of the East Asian model may be slowed down, but not stopped. But if Russia ties its fate to China and the new collectivist model, the decline of the West could happen faster than expected.

1 Popov, Vladimir. Why Europe looks so much like China: Big government and low income inequalities. MPRA Paper No. 106326, March 2021.

2 Keun Lee and Vladimir Popov (Eds.) Re-thinking East Asian Model of Economic Development After the Covid-19. Special Issue of Seoul Journal of Economics, 2020, Vol. 33;

Popov, Vladimir. Which economic model is more competitive? The West and the South after the Covid-19 pandemic. Seoul Journal of Economics 2020, Vol. 33, No. 4, pp. 505-538;

Covid-19 pandemic and long-term development trajectories of East Asian and Western economic models. Pathways to Peace and Security ( ), 2020, 2 (59).

3 Popov, Vladimir. Global health care system after coronavirus: Who has responsibility to protect. MPRA Paper No. 100542, May 2020;

Popov, Vladimir. How to Deal with a Coronavirus Economic Recession? MPRA Paper No. 100485, May 2020.

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The Main Contradiction of the Modern Era - Inter Press Service

I believe I will live well past the age of 100, 150 or even beyond. I believe that you will likely live this long as well.

As it happens, more of us are already living well past our 100th birthday than ever before in human history. Our average lifespans have risen by decades in just the past half century. Whats more, the technologies that will add these extra, healthy years to our lives already exist.

Still, it feels almost crass to consider the coming longevity boom when the world is still in the throes of a pandemic that has claimed millions of lives and caused a decline in life expectancy in many countries, including the U.S.

It might also seem exactly the wrong moment to talk about our lives getting longer when the world faces extreme temperatures and untold suffering as the climate changes and the Earth warms.

Yet, it is precisely because of these grave threats to humanity that we must begin seriously grappling with longevity it is, in so many ways,thekey to reframing our thinking surrounding many of our most persistent problems, starting with one of the greatest problems of all: How we approach our health.

Health-care systems throughout the world face a similar dilemma, which is how best to deliver an equal level of care to individuals throughout society.

In the U.S., this inequality can be particularly stark. A 2019 study published byJAMAdrew on survey data from the CDC from 1993 to 2017, and found that, while all Americans self-reported health had declined in that time, white men in the highest income bracket were, overall, the healthiest, while poor minorities reported the lowest health overall. In fact, the study found that the gap between rich and poor Americans and their health outcomes was widening, with the widest of all gaps in groups that were poor and not white. These results are supported by other, even more recent studies, such as one, published in the journal PNAS, which found that the Black-white life expectancy gap grew by nearly a year and a half in 2020, from 3.6 to 5 years.

Addressing such unequal outcomes in our health systems is of the highest import, and one way to begin to do it is by thinking about individuals overall health and longer-term, lifespan health outcomes. As the PNAS study shows, comparing life expectancies of different groups can be terribly revealing. What if we transformed our health-care system to be geared toward promoting human longevity, with the key goal being across all demographics to extend life expectancy?

We can already begin to see the effects of a restructured system such as this one by the extraordinary deployment of anewtechnology on an underserved population, in the story of Victoria Gray and her sickle cell anemia.

The hereditary trait that causes sickle cell disease affects tens of millions worldwide, including as much as 30% of sub-Saharan Africans, and up to three million African-Americans. The bone marrow of those with sickle cell disease produces abnormally shaped red blood cells that are unable to carry oxygen to the body, which often leads to fatigue and frequent infections. In severe cases like that of Victoria, the disorder also causes sudden and excruciating bouts of pain. It also leads to premature death. The average life span for those suffering sickle cell is just 54 years old. In 2019, when she was 34 years old, the condition had grown so dire, she could no longer walk or feed herself. Emergency room visits and prolonged hospitalizations and blood transfusions were the norm. More than a nuisance, her inherited disease was a death sentence.

Until, one day in 2019, doctors at the Sarah Cannon Research Institute (SCRI) in Nashville, Tennessee, threw Victoria a lifeline. She became the first patient to receive anewform of treatment for hereditary diseases. Doctors at the SCRI removed bone marrow from her body and altered the genes of her cells using anewtechnology called CRISPR-Cas9. The procedure effectively edited out the defects in her genes that caused sickle cell, then reintroduced billions of enhanced cells back into her body. One year after the treatment, Victoria appeared to be doing marvelously. When researchers checked nine months after initial treatment, the vast majority of bone marrow cells and hemoglobin proteins found in her body appeared to be functioning effectively. More importantly, her pain attacks and hospital visits were a thing of the past.

It is perhaps too early to declare this procedure a cure for all sickle-cell disease, but it has for the moment completely altered the life of one person. It also gives us a glimpse into the future, into a whole host of treatments we can now produce by directly altering our genomic code. Humanity is on the verge of a fundamental health transformation with thisnewtoolkit, and this revolution will allow us to treat or even cure previously untreatable diseases many of which have long ravaged underserved populations. By thinking about ways to extend everyones life, we can deliver better health care for all.

There is, of course, the persistent fear that extreme longevity will leave most of us and the Earth in ruin. But statistics tell a different story. The worlds population is on track to stop growing by the end of this century, according to 2019 analysis by the Pew Research Center. A 2020 study by The Lancet projected that the global population will not just stop growing; it will begin shrinking from around 9.7 billion people in 2064 to just 8.8 billion by 2100. There are more people over 65 than under five in the world a first in recorded history. This trend is what demographers refer to as the silver tsunami, and it is going to have enormous economic and social ramifications for everyone and everything on our planet. The longevity revolution is already creating a seismic shift in life on Earth. We would be wise to begin preparing for this shift now.

Preparing for the longevity revolution requires us to think long term, which is not something humans are generally very good at. Still, we must try. So many of the blind spots and weaknesses in our society were revealed by the pandemic, and so many of these had to do with our inability to think longer term. By thinking longer term, we might begin to transform our world today, and make us all healthier in the process. It is, quite simply, our moral duty.

Sergey Young is alongevity investor, the founder of Longevity Vision Fund and author of the new bookThe Science and Technology of Growing Young(BenBella Books).

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How increasing life expectancy can solve other problems at the same time - MarketWatch

Despite having never been in a band or actually showing any real aptitude for playing the drums, I've always in some small way identified as a drummer. I got my first drum set when I was 16, with heavy metal dreams and a touch of teenage angst. Thirty years on, I have a digital kit, and I take lessons periodically. I may not be able to play (well), but I still love the drums.

So I was saddened by the passing of Rolling Stones drummer Charlie Watts. Watts played with the world's biggest rock band for a staggering 58 years and was happily married for 57 until his death at 80; beyond his musical talent, Watts was remarkable for being impervious to the rock-n-roll debauchery that defined his bandmates. He met celebrity with indifference. "Playing the drums," he said, "was all I was interested in. The rest made me cringe."

As well as his jazz-inspired, swing-infused drumming style, Watts was known for his steady, Zen-like eccentricities. On the road, he would draw a sketch of the bed of every hotel room he slept in. In the midst of post-show bedlam, he would calmly return to the stage to meticulously check that his drumsticks were placed just so on his kit, even though it would soon be dismantled and stored on a tour bus. Over the years he said that he could easily accept the Stones coming to an end, but that without drumming, he would probably go mad.

Though that might sound extreme, there's some scientific basis for his claim. Research has linked musical engagement and drumming in particular to well-being and human flourishing, which is linked to physical health and life longevity. In ancient philosophy, the highest human good is to attain Eudaimonia, to live in harmony with the highest version of yourself. Watts certainly came close to attaining this, and it is arguably in part because, before he was anything else, Charlie Watts was a drummer.

Multiple studies show mental perceptions have direct impact on our physical health. For example, subjective age the age you feel versus the age you are has been shown to be an important predictor or late-life health outcomes, including level of risk for stress-related illness, depression, and the negative physical effects of a sedentary lifestyle. An equal factor is subjective wellbeing how much you feel your life is going well.

Ruth A. Dubrot, a lecturer in music education at Boston University, sought to identify ways in which engagement with music impacts the lives of older adult blues/rock musicians who regularly participate in a blues jam. She found that "eudaimonic well-being is the result of active engagement in human activities that are goal-directed and purposeful," and that having a positive subjective wellbeing involves "the self-realization of individual dispositions and talents over a lifetime."

A 2003 study published in the American Journal of Public Health investigated drumming as a complementary therapy to treat addiction. The study's author, anthropologist Michael Winkelman of Arizona State, concluded that drumming "produces pleasurable experiences, enhanced awareness of preconscious dynamics, release of emotional trauma, and reintegration of self." Winkelman noted further that drumming "alleviates self-centeredness, isolation, and alienation, creating a sense of connectedness with self and others" and "provides a secular approach to accessing a higher power and applying spiritual perspectives."

Another study, published in the International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Health and Well-being in 2018, investigated the relationship between group drumming and wellbeing; the study's co-authors found that, through drumming, certain emotional, psychological, and social dimensions of wellbeing emerged, including agency, accomplishment, engagement, identity, hedonia (positive affect and pleasant physical effects of drumming), and social well-being.

But if joining a drum circle gathering in a ring to drum, purely to form a group consciousness sounds a bit too woo-woo, there are health benefits to jamming out by yourself, too. Researchers at multiple UK universities found that rock drumming for one hour per week improves how children with additional educational needs; their study specifically focused on children with autism, and suggested that drumming for an hour a week helped them perform better in school, particularly by helping them improve their dexterity, rhythm, and timing.

Beyond mental health effects, drumming provides a physical workout. The so-called Clem Burke Drumming Project, a drumming-related research collaboration involved in the aforementioned childhood drum study, also found drumming requires enormous stamina, burning between 400-600 calories an hour. In tests conducted for the project, drumming brought Burke's heart rate up to between 140-150 beats a minute on average, with a peak of 190, which is comparable to that of top athletes with the difference being that a drummer on tour will perform to this level nightly, far more frequently than most participants in professional sport.

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And more good news: While percussionists are stereotyped as unintelligent, data suggests otherwise. Swedish researchers found drummers score higher on intelligence tests, and say that the "rhythmic accuracy in brain activity that is observed when a person maintains a steady beat is also important to the problem-solving capacities measured with the intelligence tests." Another study investigating a drummer's ability to perform complex motor tasks with their two limbs independently found that drummer brains are wired differently, having a "more efficient neuronal design of cortical motor areas."

Of course, we can only speculate on the impact drumming had on the actual physical and mental health of Charlie Watts. But research certainly supports that drumming and musical engagement in particular can only be strong factors to a person's general wellbeing, and directly contribute to positive health outcomes and longevity.

As for my own drumming, every now and then on the rare occasion I actually sit down to play, I have a fleeting moment of not overthinking or being self-conscious where I experience pure flow. It's that feeling, I realize, that keeps my appreciation for the drums alive not with the ambition of rock stardom, but the aspiration to arrive at some Eudaimonia of my own, and to feel that little bit more like Charlie Watts.

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Drummer jokes got it wrong: Why drummers are smarter, healthier, and live longer lives - Salon

The possibility of living 150 or even 200 years is within humanitys grasp and advances in diagnostics, treatments and organ regeneration and replacement are moving this prospect ever nearer. Early death from diseases such as cancer, heart disease and diabetes will no longer be inevitable for millions of people.

These are among the tantalising and radical ideas Sergey Young presents in his book The Science and Technology of Growing Young (published by BenBella Books).

Slowing, reversing or even ending ageing will become a universally accepted ambition in the healthcare community, he says. Technology is converging to make this a certainty. Developments in the understanding and manipulation of our genes and cells, in the development of small-scale health diagnostics and in the leveraging of data for everything from drug discovery to precision treatment of disease are radically changing how we think about healthcare and ageing, he says.

With a background in fund management and investing, Youngs own epiphany came when doctors told him that he would need to take statins for the rest of his life to control his high cholesterol. This has led him into researching the science of ageing and the frontiers of medicine and technology. His $100 million Longevity Vision Fund invests in companies at the edge of breakthroughs in life-extension technology and he is a board member of the American Federation of Aging Research.

Young insists that he is not in the business of trying to cheat death personally. Even if I die at the age of 80, which would be typical for my cohort, I want to have done so sharing the best ideas about longevity. If that benefits my children and grandchildren and society in general thats a good legacy.

With a regular regime of intensive health checks, body sensors and a rigorous diet and exercise regime, Young practises what he has learned on his journey around the bleeding edge of medical research and clearly intends maximising his own lifespan.

Though he is not a doctor, Youngs extensive research among the medical and life science community synthesised much of the best thinking on arresting ageing. His book provides a fascinating look at whats possible within both near and longer-term horizons, ranging over subjects such as gene editing, stem cell therapy, organ replacement and bionic augmentation.

If we want to life a long life, the best thing we can do right now, he says, is to be proactive about our health so we can stick around for the medical and technological advances that are coming down the tracks in next decade or so that could prevent or cure what he calls the monster diseases, such as cancer and heart disease.

That seems like an audacious claim. But take cancer, for example. Eighty years ago, there was no drug to treat it but now there are at least seven pharmaceutical approaches to cancer treatment and more than 100 chemotherapy drugs in use. Five-year survival rates from cancer have been improving by close to 2 per cent a year for the past 50 years. That rate of progress is set to explode in the years ahead, he says.

Cancer medicine right now is largely reactive, and treatment often starts too late. Young envisages a future with low-cost ubiquitous connected devices that will constantly monitor your health. Some will be external while others will be embedded under your skin. Some could be swallowed with your breakfast or remain swimming through your bloodstream at all times, monitoring your heart rate, respiration, skin secretions and free-floating DNA in your body that may indicate cancer or other diseases.

Early detection of diseases will be complemented by vastly improved drugs and treatments aided by artificial intelligence. Consider how quickly and effectively vaccines have been developed and deployed in the Covid-19 pandemic, he notes.

Then consider the issue of organ and limb replacement and regeneration. Advances in areas such as 3D printing and life science mean that a whole host of damaged or diseased body parts can be replaced. We can have new organs, grown in many cases by our own cells, mitigating the prospect that our bodies will reject them.

Add all this science and technology progress together and the prospect of breaching the current limit of human life of about 120 years, is not only feasible, but inevitable, he believes. Not alone would we live longer but we would enjoy the benefits of living healthier lives for longer too.

For many, this utopian vision raises disturbing questions. There are a whole host of moral and ethical issues here. Would the benefits of defying ageing be spread evenly across social classes and geographies? Do people really want to live a lot longer? Could the planet contain the increase the population? Would a new divide emerge between the body enhanced older population and traditionalists resistant to this form of progress?

Young responds by saying that doing nothing would be truly immoral. Existing healthcare costs are enormous, he points out. Technology offers a pathway to cheaper ubiquitous healthcare solutions that are within the grasp of everyone. Fertility rates are declining in many parts of the globe and advances in technology will result in greater sustainability in energy and food production.

A longevity revolution is on the way but it is disruptive innovators rather than Big Pharma who will lead the way, he believes. The medical establishment will ultimately embrace it as doctors are swamped with patients and outmoded treatments. Access to the best information, drugs and technology will empower doctors to provide better, more affordable and empathetic care to their patients and expensive hospital admissions could plummet.

In as little as 10 years we will look back at the treatment of ageing and disease as quite naive, Young concludes.

No smoking and restrict alcohol: Smoking is the biggest no-no for longevity for obvious reasons. High and regular use of alcohol damages your liver and pancreas, causes high blood pressure, increases your risk of stroke, brings on immune system disorders, leads to early onset Alzheimers disease and contributes to at least 200 more health conditions.

Slash sugar consumption: Excess sugar is poison, he says. It wears out the pancreas among other problems. Eliminate it wherever possible. Cut out all processed foods and limit fructose. Restrict carbs as they ultimately break down into glucose.

Fasting: Calorie reduction reduces the chances of developing health problems such as diabetes, cancer, heart disease and cognitive decline and preserves immune system function. Young recommends an intermittent fasting regime where you eat all of your meals within an eight-hour period early in the day and then refrain from eating until the next morning. Clinical data shows that intermittent fasting can improve weight loss, insulin stability, cholesterol levels.

Food as medicine: Stick to an organic, mainly plant-based diet, eliminating processed foods. Choose grass-fed free-range meat and wild caught fish. Include health fats such as extra virgin olive oil which has high anti-oxidant anti-inflammatory and anti-allergic properties that can help preserve cell condition and protect from a range of diseases. He also recommends the use of supplements to provide the nutrients we cant get from our foods.

Consume more water: Regular consumption of water improves resting calorie burn by up to 30 per cent and encourages you to consume less sugary and caffeine drinks. It also suppresses hunger so you will eat less.

Sleep more: Sleep deprivation significantly increases your chances of a heart attack. The link between poor sleep and cancer is so strong that the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) has classified night-shift work as a probable carcinogen. Young says we should use every trick in the book to aid sleep including transitions rituals such as hot baths, cool bedrooms, black-out curtains, meditation and ditching digital devices at night.

Exercise: Even moderate exercise can add up to seven years to our lives, can cut cancer rates by up to 23 per cent and maintain cardio health among other benefits. Walking is a great start. Try to do 10,000 steps a day.

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This tech investor believes well soon live to 150. Here are his seven longevity hacks - The Irish Times