“One day, your body dies, and with it, your brain stops, but no big problem, because 99% of your mind is still fine, running happily on IT, in the cloud.” - Futurist Dr. Ian Pearson
Catch Me Up
We live, we age, we die. So far in history, dying is the largest cause of death, with an estimated 100% success rate across the globe. But what if it were a curable disease? Some scientists see aging as an illness with potential for eradication.
The Upside ⇡
If you’re like me, the FOMO associated with dying is the scariest part of the whole ordeal. What if we finally get flying cars the year after I kick the bucket? What if we finally solve the Riemann Hypothesis or find out if Britney Spears is, in fact, in need of freeing? New developments in longevity science suggest we may all be able to stick around and see what happens. According to the tech world’s favorite longevity doctor, Dr. Peter Attia, the secret to a long life is finding a balance of lifespan and healthspan. In short, we want to live better, for longer. Though death is likely on the other side of the victory lap, AI enthusiasts and cryonics nuts have high hopes that we may find the secret to eternal life through future technologies. The main challenge of tackling death at the moment is combating the accumulation of various kinds of damage that occur on the DNA level in the body. According to preeminent cancer researcher Andrei Gudkov, “It’s like every cell in our body has a little bit of uranium.” In any case, developments in geriatrics and longevity studies will likely help us age gracefully and healthfully for more years than ever before.
The Downside ⇣
While a world full of grandmas and grandpas sounds like it would be filled with baked cookies and argyle sweaters, there are serious implications to expanding the average human lifespan. Indeed, we may have already passed the estimated maximum carrying capacity of the planet, which falls between 4 and 9 billion (we’ll hit 8b around 2024). Lengthening the human lifespan would only exacerbate the problem. Additionally, according to the WHO, 2.1 billion humans already lack access to clean water and 4.5 billion do not have managed sanitation. Might we try and solve these problems before dragging them out? Furthermore, as our reliance on nonrenewable resources rises, we may simultaneously witness mass downward mobility of aging groups. In the US, approximately 40 percent of middle-class Americans over age 65 are expected to fall into poverty or near poverty as they age. Hacking aging will require a system overhaul where cities, economies, and government systems are all prepared to deal with longer-living humans. Still, aging is a job-creating juggernaut, with home health and personal care aide positions projected to grow 41 percent between 2016 and 2026.
The Future ⇢
Due to modern medicine and knowledge of best health practices, folks are living longer than ever before. According to the US Census Bureau, life expectancy for the total population is projected to increase by about six years, from 79.7 in 2017 to 85.6 in 2060. The wildcard here is the various nonprofits, startups, and research groups that are working to dramatically inflate that number. The SENS Research Foundation has identified 7 already-achievable targets to counteract the sundry microscopic damage factors that cause aging. For cell loss and atrophy, we can replace cells using stem cells. For division-obsessed cells, we’ll reinforce them using telomere control. Death-resistant cells? Bring on the suicide genes. Beyond the systematic dismantling of the aging function, the options are endless: will we perhaps merge with cyborgs? Upload our brains to the cloud? Continually upgrade parts of our bodies with lab-grown or 3D-printed replacements? Live in a virtual world? Maybe all of the above. The bottom line here is: wear your dang mask and you just might get to find out.
I Want It Now
While some lifestyle choices like the keto diet have been loosely correlated with longevity, there are two factors that could significantly increase your chances of being a centenarian:
Sleep. Matthew Walker, professor of neuroscience at UC Berkeley and sleep expert has said that sleep may be one of the “most significant” lifestyle factors that determines risk profile for Alzheimer's disease, which kills 83k people per year.
Eat less. Fasting and calorie restriction have been shown to help mice live an average of 20% longer. Lay off the Cheetos and take a pause between meals every now and again if you feel like taking some extra laps around the sun.
Neat Nuggets
Some Stanford doctors sewed together a young mouse and an old mouse to discover a “miracle protein” in the blood that might solve aging
Attend RAADfest, the “Woodstock of radical life extension” happening online this year in October
This venture-backed company is trying to cure aging in dogs
Listen Up
Curious about the future of healthcare? Cam sat down with Goke Olubusi the CEO of Helium Health to talk about digital healthcare infrastructure and the future of healthcare in emerging markets. Check it out here!
Show Some Love
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