How Exercise Changes Our DNA
From the NYT: “We all know that exercise can make us fitter and reduce our risk for illnesses such as diabetes and heart disease. But just how, from start to finish, a run or a bike ride might translate into
How old you feel may predict how long you’ll live
From AP: “How old do you feel? Think carefully – the answer might help predict how much longer you’ll live. That’s according to British research posing that question to about 6,500 adults. Those who felt younger than their real age
Could New Health Technologies Offset America’s Life Expectancy Gap?
Americans are living longer than ever before, but gains in longevity are not distributed evenly throughout the country. The gaps, which in some cases span decades, have the potential to either get better or worse depending upon longevity technology adoption
The Longevity Dividend: Why living longer is actually good for economic growth
The United States is a wealthy and successful superpower, so you’d think that when it comes to life expectancy, its citizens would be in the top 10, right? Not even close: the US currently ranks 42 among the world’s countries,
Medical research should focus on Aging: Nature
Here’s a well written article from Nature about how scientists should be focusing on aging in order to 1) treat a number of diseases and 2) extend healthspan for the many people who are in the ‘older’ demographic Go Nature!
91-year-old woman finishes San Diego marathon in record time
From Reuters: “Harriette Thompson, who ran her first marathon at age 76, set a U.S. record on Sunday for the fastest finish in her 90-and-over age group, finishing the 26.2-mile Rock’n’Roll San Diego Marathon in seven hours, seven minutes and
The world is getting fatter — a huge problem
A new study published in the Lancet today showed that almost 29% of the world’s population, or 2.1 billion people, are obese. The reason this is such a huge problem is that being overweight increases one’s risk of heart disease,
Value in retraining older individuals
“Age should no longer determine the appropriate end of a working life,” writes the Economist Magazine. This seems reasonable to me, especially given that people are healthier now than ever before (and thus able to work longer). But as the
Redefining fashion at older ages
A British television station recently produced a fun film about women (with an average age of 80) who are redefining fashion for their age group. Dressing your age? I think not. Here’s the story.
Google’s plan to extend our life span will change everything
Today’s news that Google is launching a new company (Calico) to fight aging is epic. Epic. Fighting aging used to be the realm of biologists and doctors, but now that the engineers are getting involved, progress will likely move much
Life Expectancy Grows for Women Age 50 and Up
A new WHO report notes that women over 50 are now living longer. That’s the good news. The bad news is that the diseases of aging like heart disease, cancer, and diabetes are still big problems. More reason than ever
Re-imagine aging campaign
A cool idea by the folks over at SENS. Nice of them to include me along amazing people like inventor Dean Kamen whose comment is “Aging is a terrible game. You can’t win and you have to play.” Check it
Pew Foundation survey on longevity
Here’s an interesting survey by the Pew Foundation. Asked whether they, personally, would choose to undergo medical treatments to slow the aging process and live to be 120 or more, a majority of U.S. adults (56%) say “no.” But roughly
Longevity interview with Aubrey de Grey
This Newsweek article contains an excellent conversation about longevity — how we might live longer and what that might mean. Here’s one of my favorite parts of the NW interview with Aubrey de Grey: NW: But would we really want
Life expectancy divide in San Mateo County
It’s well known that there are great disparities in life expectancy around the world and within the US, but how many people know the numbers for their neighborhoods? Today I dug into the data for San Mateo County and found
80-Year-Old Climbs Everest, Breaks Record
Another beautiful case of the ‘old’ not really being quite so old. 80-year-old Yuichiro Miura reached the top of Everest and called his daughter, saying that “This is the best feeling in the world.” Gotta love it. Here’s the WSJ
Fortune Magazine on 5 Billionaires who want to live forever
Here’s the link. I think this could have been a longer list, but maybe the writers didn’t have time. Here’s an article I wrote in a similar theme called “Science Fiction Gets Funding.”
President Obama’s remarks on the Brain Initiative
Can be found here. And here is an info-graphic. This initiative is an important step, since the brain is the least understood of all our body parts. As the population ages, and people are able to remain healthy in other
Tech Titans co-sponsor $33M prize to extend human life
From Cnet: Backed by tech luminaries, the Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences, a $3 million reward, is being presented to 11 different scientists for their efforts to cure diseases. Here’s a link to the actual prize site. Google’s Sergey Brin
Oxford debate on whether aging should be defeated
Cancer, diabetes, Alzheimer’s — these are all diseases of aging, yet some people are willing to argue that aging is a good thing. That’s the question at hand at this Oxford University Scientific Society Debate between SENS Foundation Chief Science