5 ms·

I think David Sinclair's track record of actually producing meaningful improvements in human longevity is zero. The whole sirtuin thing got big funding from pha

by Gatsky 4y ago

I think David Sinclair's track record of actually producing meaningful improvements in human longevity is zero. The whole sirtuin thing got big funding from pharma and then totally failed. I would remain very sceptical of what he says, as he definitely talks up his own work as high as it can go and beyond. Personally, I doubt these supplements make any difference. I also doubt that metformin makes a big difference (as well as being poorly tolerated in many people). This is what comes to mind: There is one universally beneficial thing and that is exercise. What exercise? Anything is better than nothing. But doing 150 minutes per week of Zone 2 is probably optimal. Also resistance training. Don't over do it. Second thing: screening for things that kill you. Manage modifiable cardiovascular risk factors: - check lipid profile including Lp(a) and ApoB, manage appropriately - inflammation, although can be hard to improve, maybe dietary changes. - hypertension Also do all the screening for cancer: mammogram, faecal occult blood, pap smears. Take a thorough family history, what did people die of and at what age. There can be clues from that about what needs attention. In the extreme case, there may be a strong family history of cancer indicating need for germline testing. Other things: Pneumococcal vaccine, shingles vaccine, flu vaccine. If the option exists, move closer to the equator (mortality is higher further from the equator, as is cancer incidence). Other comments mention social activities, also very important.

MichaelRazum 4y ago
Not sure about the evidence, can't judge on that. But he looks really good for his age. Of course depends if it is due of his lifestyle or not.
- cassianoleal 4y ago
  > he looks really good for his age That's anectodal and also quite subjective. The fact that he uses this as an argument for his studies (I've heard him saying exactly that in interviews) makes it very hard to take him seriously. > depends if it is due of his lifestyle or not Most likely genetics. I know plenty of people who look great for their ages whilst eating what Sinclair would probably consider a bad diet (mostly beef and processed meats, with some grains, vegetables and fruits interspersed) and taking no supplements. I'm talking about senior people who appear 10-15 years younger than their ages. I'm not using these anecdotes to promote not taking supplements or eating that kind of diet. Some of these people are but they're not in the business of selling their lifestyle and are not scientists at all. Also, looking good for one's age doesn't mean they're not going to die of a heart disease in 5 years time.
adrian_b 4y ago
While my parents have lived reasonably long, my father until 90 and my mother until 86, they have both lost around 4-5 years of life because of illnesses that have been diagnosed much too late. In both cases they belonged to risk groups for certain illnesses, but I was not aware of this. Now I wish there would have been some resource enumerating risks for older people and how to diagnose early the corresponding illnesses. For example, my mother was 1. old, 2. woman, 3. taking for many years a medication against high blood pressure, 4. avoiding to eat much salt for fear of raising the blood pressure. These 4 conditions create a high risk of hyponatremia and/or hypokalemia (too low content in the body of sodium and/or potassium, because they are eliminated too quickly from the body). Both affections are extremely dangerous. To avoid any problems, it would have been enough if my mother would have made every few months a cheap blood analysis, to determine the sodium and potassium contents in the blood. My mother actually made frequent enough analyses of the blood and all results had always been perfect. However, after she became seriously ill and eventually the cause was discovered, I have looked at the earlier blood analyses and while they had checked a myriad of other blood components, sodium and potassium had never been measured. In the case of my father, he had smoked excessively a large part of his life until he has eventually succeeded to quit smoking. He was also overweight. These 2 conditions together increase a lot the risk of renal cancer. Had we been aware of that, he should have attempted to check periodically for this. As it was, the cancer was undetected for at least a couple of years, and it was detected only after it produced a bone tumor (the spread of renal cancerous cells to bones is a frequent occurrence), and even that was detected too late, because after a bone fracture, even if the symptoms had been as in a textbook example of bone cancer, some incompetent doctor diagnosed the symptoms as being caused by osteoporosis and arthritis and did not send him to the scintillation analysis that would have diagnosed the cancer immediately. I have also been too trustful and I did not seek a second opinion. Due to the many cases of erroneous diagnoses, which happen much more frequently with older people, because the doctors tend to attribute any complaints to normal old age instead of sending them to multiple analyses to investigate for the real cause, it is good to seek second opinions whenever there is any doubt. In conclusion, I believe that it is important to determine for each parent which are the main health risk factors and to test periodically for the most likely of the illnesses that might begin to affect them after a certain age.
bilsbie 4y ago
> I think David Sinclair's track record of actually producing meaningful improvements in human longevity is zero. I know it’s not a great counterpoint but how does he look so young for being in his 50s? He must be doing something that works.
- copperx 4y ago
  He said it himself on Twitter: by using old photos as profile pics.

by Gatsky 4y ago

MichaelRazum 4y ago

Not sure about the evidence, can't judge on that. But he looks really good for his age. Of course depends if it is due of his lifestyle or not.

cassianoleal 4y ago
> he looks really good for his age That's anectodal and also quite subjective. The fact that he uses this as an argument for his studies (I've heard him saying exactly that in interviews) makes it very hard to take him seriously. > depends if it is due of his lifestyle or not Most likely genetics. I know plenty of people who look great for their ages whilst eating what Sinclair would probably consider a bad diet (mostly beef and processed meats, with some grains, vegetables and fruits interspersed) and taking no supplements. I'm talking about senior people who appear 10-15 years younger than their ages. I'm not using these anecdotes to promote not taking supplements or eating that kind of diet. Some of these people are but they're not in the business of selling their lifestyle and are not scientists at all. Also, looking good for one's age doesn't mean they're not going to die of a heart disease in 5 years time.

adrian_b 4y ago

While my parents have lived reasonably long, my father until 90 and my mother until 86, they have both lost around 4-5 years of life because of illnesses that have been diagnosed much too late. In both cases they belonged to risk groups for certain illnesses, but I was not aware of this. Now I wish there would have been some resource enumerating risks for older people and how to diagnose early the corresponding illnesses. For example, my mother was 1. old, 2. woman, 3. taking for many years a medication against high blood pressure, 4. avoiding to eat much salt for fear of raising the blood pressure. These 4 conditions create a high risk of hyponatremia and/or hypokalemia (too low content in the body of sodium and/or potassium, because they are eliminated too quickly from the body). Both affections are extremely dangerous. To avoid any problems, it would have been enough if my mother would have made every few months a cheap blood analysis, to determine the sodium and potassium contents in the blood. My mother actually made frequent enough analyses of the blood and all results had always been perfect. However, after she became seriously ill and eventually the cause was discovered, I have looked at the earlier blood analyses and while they had checked a myriad of other blood components, sodium and potassium had never been measured. In the case of my father, he had smoked excessively a large part of his life until he has eventually succeeded to quit smoking. He was also overweight. These 2 conditions together increase a lot the risk of renal cancer. Had we been aware of that, he should have attempted to check periodically for this. As it was, the cancer was undetected for at least a couple of years, and it was detected only after it produced a bone tumor (the spread of renal cancerous cells to bones is a frequent occurrence), and even that was detected too late, because after a bone fracture, even if the symptoms had been as in a textbook example of bone cancer, some incompetent doctor diagnosed the symptoms as being caused by osteoporosis and arthritis and did not send him to the scintillation analysis that would have diagnosed the cancer immediately. I have also been too trustful and I did not seek a second opinion. Due to the many cases of erroneous diagnoses, which happen much more frequently with older people, because the doctors tend to attribute any complaints to normal old age instead of sending them to multiple analyses to investigate for the real cause, it is good to seek second opinions whenever there is any doubt. In conclusion, I believe that it is important to determine for each parent which are the main health risk factors and to test periodically for the most likely of the illnesses that might begin to affect them after a certain age.

bilsbie 4y ago

> I think David Sinclair's track record of actually producing meaningful improvements in human longevity is zero. I know it’s not a great counterpoint but how does he look so young for being in his 50s? He must be doing something that works.

copperx 4y ago
He said it himself on Twitter: by using old photos as profile pics.