Summary
In this podcast episode, Rhonda Patrick interviews Dr. Elissa Epel, a professor of psychiatry at the University of California and director of the Aging, Metabolism, and Emotion Center. The discussion centers around telomeres, which are plastic caps that protect chromosomes from damage and contribute to the aging process. The episode touches on various factors that affect telomere length, including genetics, environmental factors, and lifestyle habits such as exercise, nutrition, and stress management. It also explores differences in aging biology between men and women, the impact of pre-pregnancy health on babies' aging trajectories, and biohacks and lifestyle hacks that have the potential to be better than drugs for fighting the aging process.
Dr. Epel emphasizes that rather than focusing on maximal longevity, people should focus on years of healthy living, making the entire formula for aging a combination of things—a positive stress, social connections, stress management, physical activity, and nutrition. According to the episode, short telomeres can be attributed to genetic disorders and mutations or environmental factors such as poor diet, psychological and emotional stress, and exposure to chemicals and air pollution. The study suggests that maintaining a healthy diet, limiting sugar intake, and even caffeine can help prevent telomere shortening.
The discussion also points out how stress affects aging, from inflammation to shortened telomeres, and distinguishes between toxic stress and positive stress caused by exercise. Women generally have slower and more robust aging biology due to factors like estrogen and longer telomeres. The episode explores recommendations for maintaining a healthy lifestyle before getting pregnant that positively impact unborn children.
Dr. Epel also highlights the importance of having a combination of movement and mind-body activity to turn on restorative processes in the body that can benefit aging. The podcast has no discussion about sponsors, and Dr. Epel advises caution when it comes to consumer-available biomarker tests, particularly telomere length tests, as there are issues with accuracy and error, recommending education on the tests and the issues involved when interpreting results. Overall, the episode provides insights into how targeted exercise and monitoring of biomarkers can be used to benefit aging processes.
