Multivitamins for memory, 61-year-old man who looks 38, gender gap

Welcome to the latest issue of The Longevity Newsletter, bringing you this week’s longevity breakthroughs.

Today, we have the third big study on multivitamins and memory… a 61-year-old who looks like he’s 38… and the longevity gender gap. Let’s dig in.

LONGEVITY LIFESTYLE DEPT.

Third big study says multivitamins help memory

What's the news: A daily multivitamin helps prevent memory loss and slow down cognitive aging.

Why should we believe it: This news is based on a new study published last week by scientists at Harvard Medical School and Columbia University. The scientists tracked a group of 573 individuals, aged 60 or older, over two years. Some of the subjects were given multivitamins, others placebo. Result? A "modest benefit" of the daily multivitamin on global cognition.

Why this is a big deal: This is the third large study to look at effects of a multivitamin on cognition and memory. The scientists in this study pooled the new results with the previous two studies and performed a meta-analysis. The conclusion was that the daily multivitamin "significantly benefits both global cognition and episodic memory."

So what specifically can you do now: Unless you are sure you are already getting the necessary levels of a dozen or more vitamins and minerals, consider taking a good daily multivitamin. It could make your brain work better today, and save it from decline tomorrow.

If you need a recommendation, ConsumerLab.com, a third-party testing lab, recommends Kirkland Signature Daily Multi. It has a great price (it's the Costco supplement brand) and according to Consumer Lab, it provides "at least 100% of the recommended daily intake" of most vitamins and minerals.

IRREVOCABLY PERSONAL DEPT.

Dave Pascoe, 61-year-old top rejuvenation athlete

Who we're talking about: Dave Pascoe, a retired systems engineer. Pascoe is 61 years old, but he looks (and physically is) more like a 38-year-old.

And the news is: Pascoe currently sits at #6 on the Rejuvenation Olympics leaderboard, one spot above Rejuvenation Olympics founder Bryan Johnson. Pascoe's epigenetic age is 37.95, and his speed of aging is 0.66 biological years for every calendar year.

How does Pascoe stay so young? His philosophy is to look at what successful slow-agers are doing and emulate that. That's translated into many longevity interventions:

• Exercise every day

• Diet consisting of whole foods, mainly fruits, vegetables, and seafood

• Cold therapy

• Plasma donations to gradually filter his blood

• Hyperbaric oxygen therapy

• Occasional fasting

• Rapamycin

• 120 supplements daily

Whoa, hold on: Pascoe's approach might sound demanding to you, but it's quite subdued compared to the longevity regimen of someone like Bryan Johnson.

Unlike Johnson, Pascoe doesn't restrict calories, isn't vegan, doesn’t use testosterone replacement therapy, and doesn't get a battery of tests to check on each of his organs. He estimates his entire protocol costs less than $30k per year, compared to Johnson's $2M per year.

So what does this mean for you? Pascoe's results show that extending healthspan (and remarkably youthful looks) is possible using interventions available today at a manageable budget.

If you'd like to find out Pascoe’s entire regimen, he documents it on his site. It's worth taking a look there. In the words of Pascoe himself, "I only wish I knew & applied everything I know now, decades ago!"

AROUND THE WEB

Rapamycin: a practical guide to getting started

Can trying to cheat death paradoxically kill you sooner?

You know it’s a placebo. So why does it still work?

Aging research comes of age (overview in Nature)

The groundbreaking science of water fasting (Peter Diamandis interviews Valter Longo)

DEPT. OF RISKY BUSINESS

Longevity gender gap shrinking

What's the news? A demographic study published earlier this month by scientists in Spain found that longevity is increasing worldwide, and that the longevity gap between men and women is shrinking.

Specifically, the study found that, in places with the highest life expectancies, such as the United States and Western Europe, the gap between men and women will decrease from 4.84 in 1990 to an estimated 3.4 years by 2030.

Good, bad or, bland? You might think this is good news, because we are all living longer. Or you might think it's bad news, because men still don't live as long as women. Or you might think it's no news at all, because the effect is small, even if it's moving in a positive direction.

Here's the part that got me: Nobody knows for sure why the longevity gender gap is there in the first place. But it probably has to do with smoking, alcohol-related deaths, or dangerous stunts designed to impress friends — all of which are disproportionately practiced by men.

In other words, longevity increases are often due to eliminating known harmful and risky behaviors. But since you read this newsletter, I imagine you already aim to live a sane and healthy life, and have eliminated many such behaviors already.

What does it mean for you: While population-level longevity statistics are slowly inching up, they say little about your odds of living long, which are probably much, much better than the general population — whether you are a man or a woman.

I’ll leave you with that thought for this week. As always, thanks for reading The Longevity Newsletter. If you enjoyed this issue, consider forwarding it to someone who would find it interesting as well. I'll be back in your inbox next Thursday, with more practical, inspiring, and fun news based on the latest in longevity science.

- The Longevity Hound