At first, the headline in the November issue of Men’s Health made me cringe: “The End of Aging.” I was prepared for another hype-filled article promising men that if they just replace their hormones, they’ll never age.
But the article, by geriatrician Dr. T.E. Holt, is quite the opposite. It doesn’t mention hormones once. Instead it reviews the science of aging–at least as much as we know about it today–but makes no grand promises that it will help us live forever.
I took two major conclusions away from this article: First, aging is merely a series of tiny accidents. Years of breathing in oxygen results in oxidative stress, which in turn causes aging. But Holt wisely advises readers not to run out and buy anti-oxidants.
Why? Here comes the second conclusion: How well we age depends largely on our genes and our gender. (Sorry guys: Women have the edge.) In other words, we can’t control how long we live.
That said, Holt still provides a number of tips for achieving longevity. I can definitely get on board with these, as they match the conclusion of my book. They are:
1. Know your risk factors, such as hypertension, and get them under control
2. Exercise
3. Watch what you eat
4. Watch what you weigh
5. Don’t go overboard–i.e. with Ironman-style workouts
6. Control your cholesterol
7. Watch your blood pressure
8. Check your blood sugar
9. Stop smoking
10. Use your brain–be a lifelong learner
None of this is brain surgery. All of it has been said by proponents of healthy, hormone-free aging, including me. But it’s certainly worth repeating.
Read more of Holt’s tips here.
In 1990, a scientist at the Medical College of Wisconsin named Daniel Rudman published a study that gave birth to the modern anti-aging movement. Rudman’s paper, which was published in the New England Journal of Medicine showed that 12 men who were given injections of human growth hormone (HGH) lost 14 percent of their body fat and increased their lean body mass — including muscle — by 9 percent. HGH, which is mostly used to help short children grow, became the go-to drug for perfectly healthy, aging people who were in search of the fountain of youth.
