Archive for the ‘Life Extension’ Category

South Africas National Nuclear Regulator (NNR)has approved a 20-year life extension for the 924MW Unit 1 of the Koeberg nuclear power plant, located near Cape Town in western South Africa, allowing the reactor to operate until July 2044. However, the NNR has deferred a life extension decision on the 930MW Unit 2 until late 2025, since an assessment of the second reactors safety case is still ongoing.

In January 2024, the NNR had agreed to Eskoms request to separate the Unit 1 and 2 licences to align with their respective commercial operating dates, with Unit 1 having started operating in July 1984 and Unit 2 in November 1985.

The 1.9GW Koeberg nuclear power plant is the only currently active nuclear plant on the African continent and produces about 5% of the South Africas electricity. In December 2023, South Africas Ministry of Electricity announced that it would start a procurement process to develop an additional 2.5GW of nuclear capacity in the country, based mostly on Small Modular Reactors.

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South Africa regulator approves life extension for the Koeberg nuclear plant Unit 1 - Renewables Auctions and the Energy Transition

The South African Nuclear Energy Corporation (Necsa) has expressed confidence that the National Nuclear Regulator (NNR) will extend the operating licence of Unit 2 at Koeberg Nuclear Power Station for a further 20 years after granting the same to Unit 1.

The NNR on Monday granted Eskom a licence to continue operating Koeberg Nuclear Power Station Unit 1, which provides 930MW to the grid, for another 20 years until July 21, 2044.

Necsa said it welcomed the NNRsfinalisation of the Long Term Operation (LTO) assessment and recommendation giving the green light for Eskom to extend operations at Unit 1.

Necsa group CEO Loyiso Tyabashe commended the NNR for ensuring nuclear safety oversight to all licensed nuclear operators and for taking time and effort in an extensive public participation process, where Necsa also got an opportunity to share its support for the life extension of Koeberg.

We congratulate Eskom for taking due care in their submission to the NNR, which has ensured that the approval is granted for Unit 1. With this track record we are confident that Unit 2 will follow suit, and Necsa is in full support, Tyabashe said.

The Koeberg Nuclear Power Station extension guarantees South Africans a 20-year continuation of secure, clean and affordable energy, he said.

Eskoms chief nuclear officer, Keith Featherstone, said the granting of the licence was a testament to the hard work and continued commitment of our teams to nuclear safety and Eskoms generation recovery plan.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which serves as a global intergovernmental forum for scientific and technical co-operation in the peaceful use of nuclear technology, confirmed it conducted a Safety Aspects of Long Term Operation (SALTO) mission at Koeberg, from March 22 to 31, 2022.

The SALTO peer review is a comprehensive safety review directly addressing strategy and key elements for the safe long-term operation of nuclear power plants. A follow-up mission is planned for September 2024, the IAEA said.

Some countries have given a high priority to extend the designed lifetime of their reactors from 40 years to 60 or 80 years, subject to regulatory approval.

To achieve the goal of the long-term safe, economic and reliable operation of a nuclear power plant, a Plant Life Management, or PLiM, programme is essential.

PLiM programmes for long-term operation are in place in many countries, including in South Africa.

World Nuclear Association spokesperson Henry Preston said the lifetime extension of a nuclear power plant was a demonstration of the hard work and commitment to nuclear safety culture by the industry.

Keeping clean energy assets, such as Koeberg, online should be greatly celebrated. Nuclear provides 24/7 clean energy supporting both energy security and sustainability.

The association explained that nuclear power plants are routinely extended, particularly water-cooled reactors like Koeberg.

Citing examples in the US and Sweden, where water-cooled reactors were granted extensions up to 80 years, the association said most plants are initially built and licensed for 40 to 60 years, then are periodically reviewed and can be extended beyond that if they meet regulatory requirements.

The Koeberg Alert Alliances Peter Becker believes the NNR had been under great pressure to make the decision.

We dont believe they have had time to fully consider all the submissions from the public. The independence of the NNR has also been questioned by the IAEA, which described it as insufficiently independent.

Cape Times

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Nuclear industry welcomes Koebergs life extension - IOL

Fort Lauderdale, FL, July 02, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Move over, lotions and serums: taking a skin care supplement is an increasingly popular way to support healthy, youthful-looking skin. A recent survey of over 3,000 Life Extension customers* revealed that the top two skin care supplements are vitamin C, with 70% of respondents taking it, while 53% choose traditional collagen supplements. For those who would prefer a vegan alternative to collagen, Life Extension has launched Vegan Pro Collagen. This innovative formula delivers a clinically studied combination of amino acids, vitamin C and botanical extracts to aid collagen production in the body, and in clinical studies has been shown to help reduce the appearance of wrinkles by 14%, enhance skin texture by 13% and increase collagen density by 8% after just eight weeks of use. *Life Extension Customer Survey conducted May 2024

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According to Michael A. Smith, MD, Life Extensions Director of Education, there are no vegan sources of collagen, but there are foods and ingredients that encourage normal collagen production in the body like tofu, lentils, citrus fruits, gotu kola and ginseng root. If you follow vegan or vegetarian dietary patterns, or dont care for traditional collagen supplements, finding an alternative that delivers collagen-friendly nutrients as well as an identical amino acid profile is a proactive way to keep youthful-looking skin, he added.

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These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

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Oral Skin Care Supplements an Increasingly Popular Option to Fight Signs of Aging - GlobeNewswire

Ive had many conversations over the years about life extension, and the idea often meets resistance. People become upset when they hear of an individual whose life has been cut short by a disease, yet when confronted with the possibility of generally extending all human life, they react negatively. Life is too difficult to contemplate going on indefinitely is a common response. But people generally do not want to end their lives at any point unless they are in enormous painphysically, mentally, or spiritually. And if they were to absorb the ongoing improvements of life in all its dimensions, most such afflictions would be alleviated. That is, extending human life would also mean vastly improving it.

But how will nanotechnology actually make this possible? In my view, the long-term goal is medical nanorobots. These will be made from diamondoid parts with onboard sensors, manipulators, computers, communicators, and possibly power supplies. It is intuitive to imagine nanobots as tiny metal robotic submarines chugging through the bloodstream, but physics at the nanoscale requires a substantially different approach. At this scale, water is a powerful solvent, and oxidant molecules are highly reactive, so strong materials like diamondoid will be needed.

And whereas macro-scale submarines can smoothly propel themselves through liquids, for nanoscale objects, fluid dynamics are dominated by sticky frictional forces. Imagine trying to swim through peanut butter! So nanobots will need to harness different principles of propulsion. Likewise, nanobots probably wont be able to store enough onboard energy or computing power to accomplish all their tasks independently, so they will need to be designed to draw energy from their surroundings and either obey outside control signals or collaborate with one another to do computation.

To maintain our bodies and otherwise counteract health problems, we will all need a huge number of nanobots, each about the size of a cell. The best available estimates say that the human body is made of several tens of trillions of biological cells. If we augment ourselves with just 1 nanobot per 100 cells, this would amount to several hundred billion nanobots. It remains to be seen, though, what ratio is optimal. It might turn out, for example, that advanced nanobots could be effective even at a cell-to-nanobot ratio several orders of magnitude greater.

One of the main effects of aging is degrading organ performance, so a key role of these nanobots will be to repair and augment them. Other than expanding our neocortex, this will mainly involve helping our nonsensory organs to efficiently place substances into the blood supply (or lymph system) or remove them. By monitoring the supply of these vital substances, adjusting their levels as needed, and maintaining organ structures, nanobots can keep a persons body in good health indefinitely. Ultimately, nanobots will be able to replace biological organs altogether, if needed or desired.

But nanobots wont be limited to preserving the bodys normal function. They could also be used to adjust concentrations of various substances in our blood to levels more optimal than what would normally occur in the body. Hormones could be tweaked to give us more energy and focus, or speed up the bodys natural healing and repair. If optimizing hormones could make our sleep more efficient, it would in effect be backdoor life extension. If you just go from needing eight hours of sleep a night to seven hours, that adds as much waking existence to the average life as five more years of lifespan!

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The Secret to Living Past 120 Years Old? Nanobots - WIRED

The National Nuclear Regulator (NNR) has started with another round of hearings on June 3, owing to concerns about the last consultation process having been insufficient.

The regulator conceded that the public required more information, but only after civil society organisations such as Southern African Faith Communities Environment Institute (Safcei) voiced its dissatisfaction with the overall governance and public participation process for the Koeberg long-term operation (LTO), or lifetime extension.

Other organisations that also raised the same concerns include Project90by2030, Save Bantamsklip, Earthlife Africa Johannesburg and Koeberg Alert Alliance (KAA).

Safcei executive director Francesca de Gasparis lists one of the main issues as being that the NNR held public hearings before the actual release of essential documentation, including a latest seismic risk study.

She says issues of safety are integral to determining the safety of the LTO, especially as the last scientific study to assess seismic risk was done in 1976.

The public needs to have sufficient data and time to make meaningful submissions. The safety of the LTO of Koeberg is a compliance and governance issue that cannot be taken lightly, De Gasparis states, questioning why South Africans have to accept 20 more years of a nuclear power station that would get ten years at most in France.

The organisations and members of the public have also raised concern about a number of safety recommendations made by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) that have not been implemented at Koeberg or, if implemented, have not been shared with the public.

These recommendations include a complete revalidation of the qualification of cables in the containment building, the full functionality of the containment structures monitoring system, the revalidation of time-limited ageing analyses and aging management of the structures, systems and components.

Failure to provide confirmation that these issues have been duly addressed has left no room for meaningful engagement. The containment structures storing high level waste are still cracked, one of which was a 110 m crack back in 2022 and aging management plans have not been shared with the public, Safcei says.

Additionally, Safcei says, an emergency compliance drill conducted at Koeberg in November 2022 revealed 22 noncompliance issues, including that the Mass Care Centre at the plant is not suitable to accept and respond to accident victims that have been exposed to radioactive areas.

KAA says Eskom has not been forthcoming about how it has addressed the critical safety issues highlighted by the IAEA regarding the LTO.

At first, Eskom did not want to make a safety case report available, then they released a heavily redacted version. After much pressure, the safety case is now available, but the 289 supporting documents are unavailable to the public. Why the secrecy, KAA member Lydia Petersen asks.

Earthlife Africa representative Makoma Lekalakala says extending Koebergs lifespan also means more toxic waste, hence the need for expanded disposal facilities on site and at Vaalputs in the Northern Cape, which stores low-level waste materials.

She adds that no feasibility studies provided to the public have shown that such expansions are doable, especially considering the proximity to local communities.

The conditions of the infrastructure to extend the life of the plant, in addition to the environmental and climate impacts, all affect the people and the planet, Lekalakala notes.

Project90 member Gabriel Klaasen agrees, saying Koeberg is already storing 40 years worth of high-level radioactive nuclear waste, for which there is no permanent solution. Once a week a truck containing low-level nuclear waste travels along the R355 alongside other motorists, with four accidents having occurred with these types of trucks over the years.

If we do not have a solution for the existing waste, why would we extend Koeberg and add an additional 20 years of waste to the mess?

De Gasparis concludes that not only is it unclear whether the plant is safe, but people have to accept that this plant will operate for another 20 years when there is much risk involved. If Eskom has addressed issues sufficiently, she implores the utility to provide proof of that.

ESKOM RATIONALE

The Koeberg nuclear power station, located 30 km north of Cape Town, is reaching the end of its 40-year designed lifespan, and Eskom has submitted its safety case to the NNR to extend the plants life by another 20 years.

Koebergs 1.8 GW generation potential is a key part of Eskoms ability to provide sufficient power to the country.

Unless the NNR grants Eskom a 20-year extension on Koebergs operating licence, the plants two 900 MW reactors will have to shut down in July this year.

Despite having taken the decision to apply for an LTO extension in 2010, the programme has been massively delayed and Eskom is now rushing to make the July 21 deadline.

Eskom says the cost of a nuclear plant LTO project is significantly cheaper than adding new onshore wind or solar PV. The primary energy cost of Koeberg is 99c/kWh, compared with 49c/kWh for wind and 43c/kWh for solar PV.

Eskom also maintains that nuclear is one of the lowest carbon emission sources of energy in the country and that the waste produced during the LTO of Koeberg would be moved to an off-site storage facility to be developed by the National Radioactive Waste Disposal Institute.

The Koeberg plant, despite having older infrastructure, which Eskom says does not necessarily mean the plant becomes less reliable or stable, lends stability to the national grid and has provided reliable baseload power to the national grid for many years.

By performing comprehensive safety assessments and applying good asset management practices, nuclear power plants can achieve safe plant operation for more than 60 years, Eskom states.

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NNR hosts new round of talks with public over Koeberg's life extension - Creamer Media's Engineering News

Fortum, a Nordic energy company with headquarters in Espoo, Finland, near Helsinki, and offices in 10 other countries, announced that it will modernize the Loviisa nuclear power plants low-pressure turbines. The project will start in 2026 as part of lifetime extension-related investments at the site.

The Lovissa plant is a dual-unit facility with a total net capacity of about 1,014 MW (Figure 1). Unit 1 was commissioned in 1977 and Unit 2 in 1980. The plant is located about 100 kilometers east of Helsinki and provided about 10% of Finlands electricity production in 2023, with the units operating at capacity factors of 89.79% and 92.32%, respectively. The modernization of the turbines is expected to increase the total capacity of the plant by approximately 38 MW.

In February 2023, the Finnish government granted a new operating license for the power plant until 2050. As a result, Fortum expects to perform continuous improvements to ensure reliable electricity production for at least the next 26 years. Fortum said it has invested approximately 200 million in refurbishing the Loviisa power plant over the past five years, and it estimated that investments related to the lifetime extension will amount to about 1 billion by 2050.

Extending the lifetime of the power plant is a major investment with a positive impactboth economically and in terms of employment. Modernizing the low-pressure turbines is our first significant investment in preparation for the lifetime extension. Our aim is for the power plant to operate during the new operating license period just as stably, reliably, and safely as it has so far, Sasu Valkamo, senior vice president of the Loviisa power plant, said in a statement.

Doosan koda Power was selected as the supplier for the low-pressure turbine job. The modernization will be carried out in conjunction with normal annual outages. In the turbine project, eight low-pressure turbine housings and their internal parts will be renewed. This particular modernization is targeting only the turbines, so it wont impact the reactor plant or nuclear safety. The project is expected to significantly improve the efficiency of the turbine plants electricity production without increasing the thermal output of the reactor.

Doosan koda Power is a seasoned turbine supplier, and we have good experiences working with them. In our previous modernization project, Doosan koda Power also supplied us with high-pressure turbines, Valkamo said.

Radek Trnn, head of Sales Nuclear at Doosan koda Power, said, Fortum is our long-term customer and we are very proud to be part of this new important modernization project at the Loviisa nuclear power plant. Nuclear power is a strategic segment for us, and this contract is further confirmation that we are on the right track.

Doosan koda Power is a leading global manufacturer and supplier of power plant machinery, especially steam turbine-generator sets with outputs between 3 MW and 1,200 MW. The company is part of the Doosan Group, which supplies technologies and services to customers all over the world.

Fortum, meanwhile, has more than 150 power plants in its fleet. In addition to the Lovissa plant, Fortum also owns shares in Olkiluoto Units 1, 2, and 3, Oskarshamn Unit 3, and Forsmark Units 1, 2, and 3. Fortum also has hydro, combined heat and power (CHP), solar, and wind power plants. It touts a 98% CO2-free electricity generation portfolio. It is the third-largest power generator in the Nordic countries and one of the leading heat producers globally.

Aaron Larson is POWERs executive editor (@POWERmagazine).

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Upgrades Planned at Loviisa Nuclear Power Plant as Part of Life Extension - POWER magazine

The French new space in-orbit services company Infinite Orbits raised a 12 million round led by Newfund Capital along with the EIC Fund, IRDI Capital Investissement and Space Founders France. The main objective of this fundraising is enabling Infinite Orbits to accelerate the development of its main project Endurance, a Life Extension satellite for space assets.

Endurance will empower satellite operators to optimize their fleet management strategies while increasing their return on investment through adding years to the life of their satellites. Endurance is planned to demonstrate the first European Life Extension mission in 2026.

Last year, we already achieved a major step: we are the first startup in the world to have a commercial nanosatellite in geostationary orbit, we formed a key alliance with satellite operator Intelsat to develop services for its fleet. With four major clients, including Azercosmos, Intelsat, CNES and Hispasat, the Company has closed its second year of revenues and is on a strong growth path to cross the 60 million figure in 2027, explained Adel Haddoud, CEO of Infinite Orbits. And as a commercially driven company, the next logical step for us is to offer all GEO operators new reliable and competitive services such as Life Extension.

Founded in 2017, Infinite Orbits Endurance will be operated by Infinite Orbits RPO technology (Rendezvous and Proximity Operations), an autonomous vision based navigation technology that allows assets in space to approach and dock to one another. RPO technology will pave the way towards a sustainable utilization of space resources, allowing for a durable space environment. The technology is designed to be replicated for advanced in-orbit services, including close inspection, re-fueling, in-space manufacturing and many more applications yet to materialize following the spectacular growth of satellites launched in recent years.

The verification and validation roadmap of Infinite Orbits technology started in 2019 with key technology partnerships including ESA & CNES and with funding from the European Innovation Council (EIC), bpifrance, La Region Occitanie. This roadmap has led to the launch of Infinite Orbits Orbit Guard #1 to GEO orbit on May 1st 2023, carrying the first version of Infinite Orbits technology.

We are thrilled to partner with a company like Infinite Orbits, perfectly embodying our commitment to backing deeptech ventures with the potential to lead globally, said Salim Hassad, Investment Director at Newfund. Infinite Orbits stands out with its exceptional founding team, robust technological foundation, and promising commercial trajectory. We are confident that Infinite Orbits will not only excel in the in-orbit servicing sector but also emerge as a future international champion.

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Toulouse-based space tech Infinite Orbits bags 12 million to build first life extension satellite - EU-Startups

Top OB/GYN Is on a Mission to Impact the Lives of Women

ATLANTA, GA / ACCESSWIRE / May 9, 2024 / May is Women's Health Month, including Women's Health Week from May 12-18. This annual observance is designed to focus attention on the health issues facing women. LaReesa Ferdinand, MD., shares some information about unique products that are available to promote better health outcomes. Dr. Ferdinand believes women should take time to focus more on their own personal health and needs. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services points out that heart disease, breast cancer, osteoporosis, depression, and autoimmune diseases are the top five health issues facing women.

RECOMMEND SOME SUPPLEMENTS

For many patients, supplements can work wonders. One that's highly recommended is Life Extension's FLORASSIST Probiotic Women's Health, an oral probiotic supplement designed with women's vaginal, digestive and immune health in mind. Probiotics play an important role in women's health by providing healthy bacteria. FLORASSIST promotes healthy vaginal flora, pH levels and tissue health, while encouraging digestive comfort and improving immune response. Get it for under $25. For more information, visit http://www.lifeextension.com

HOW IMPORTANT IS REGULAR EXERCISE

Exercise and good self-care are key to maintaining mental and physical health, and this is especially true for women. For this, try Arnicare Gel. It is scientifically formulated with Arnica and provides relief from everyday muscle aches and pains, swelling from injuries and discoloration from bruises making it an essential part of a pain-free active lifestyle. The fragrance-free formula is quickly absorbed into the skin. Get Arnicare at Walmart and Walgreens. For more information, visit http://www.arnicare.com

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About TipsOnTV TipsOnTV covers a variety of topics, including food, entertaining, personal finance, technology, travel, health, lifestyle and more.

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Women's Health Expert Dr. LaReesa Ferdinand Shares Tips to Kick Start Health and Wellness on TipsOnTv - AccessWire

Although no firm decision has been taken yet by the Army, EDR On-Line understands that the Army should take a decision soon. These vehicles have been in service for over 20 years and definitely need refurbishment.

No modification were made to the powerpack, although both the engine, a Detroit Diesel 6V53T providing 300 hp, and the transmission, an Allison X200-4 with four forward and one reverse gears, were fully refurbished bringing them to zero hour. Some sensors were added, which allow the driver to see on the new Driver Vision Enhancement system numerous data that were not available in the past, such as rounds per minute, speed, fuel status and battery status. No modification were made on the protection, although the company does not exclude the adoption of a spall liner. This, together with the maintaining of the single-pin tracks, will allow the 14 tonnes tracked vehicle to maintain its swimming capability.

To improve crew safety and vehicle survivability a new generation fire suppression system that uses FM-200 gas in place of Freon; the system in the engine compartment provides a double shot, the same being for that in the cabin and troop compartment, personnel being also able to activate the fire suppression system manually. LED lighting replaced conventional one both externally and internally.

The firepower will be improved. Two options are proposed, the first retaining the FNSS one-man Sharpshooter stabilised turret, armed with a 25 mm cannon and a 7.62 mm coaxial machine gun, and upgrading it adding a new gunners sight, a thermal imager, both from Thales Defense & Security, a laser rangefinder, and a new fire control system. The second option is to replace the existing turret with the Saber unmanned turret, also from FNSS, which is already fitted with all those systems and can host a 12.7 machine gun or a 40 mm automatic grenade launcher as secondary armament.

The Adnan features four sets of four 76 mm grenade launchers at each corner of the vehicle, while 8 grenades are located on the turret, in two clusters of three plus one tubes each located at the rear sides of the turret. Deftech replaced the grenades fire control box with an upgraded one that allows to understand if the tubes are loaded or not, improving considerably survivability chances. The launchers are interfaced through the new Battle Management System (BMS) Light with the new Laser Warning Receiver, produced by Deftech, which allows smoke grenades to be launched automatically, semi-automatically or manually. The BMS also includes a Blue Force Tracking system. The whole vehicle wiring has been replaced, allowing among other the installation of a 360 situational awareness system, front and rear sensors being both daylight and thermal. The radio suite has also been replaced by new comms in the VHF and HF bands, all software defined.

These allow the ACV-300 Adnan to swap data with other Malaysian Army vehicles, such as the AV-8 Gempita 88 armoured wheeled combat vehicle, as well as with the SR-10 VTOL unmanned air system. Electrically powered, it has a 2.2 metres wingspan and in horizontal flight is propulsed by a two-blade propeller activated by a small 1.34 hp petrol engine; for vertical take-off and landing the lift is provided by four rotors activated by electric motors. The UAS has an endurance of 90 minutes, a range of 20 km, and a maximum speed of 40 knots. Its SR-10 take-off mass is 9 kg, and its payload is a gimballed optronic sensor installed in the nose. It will represent the forward eyes of the Adnan.

In August 2023 the ACV-300 demonstrator has been tested on and off road, logging over 700 km, and test fired both static and on the move. EDR On-Line understands the budget is allocated, the company awaiting the updated requirement document to finalise the proposal, that will then lead to the selection of one of the two contenders. While the programme aims initially at upgrading only the ACV-300 in the AIFV configuration, which can carry the driver, commander, gunner and eight dismounts, the programme might extend to the remaining versions of the ACV-300 in service with the forces.

Photos by P.Valpolini

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DSA 2024 - Deftech exhibits the proof of concet vehicle of the ACV-300 life extension programme proposal for the ... - EDR Magazine

Liam Shore is a third-year researcher at the University of Liverpool, in the Department of Philosophy. His research interests fall within the domain of ethics, notably on the ethics of digital and biotechnologies.

The Making of a Philosopher

Im a philosopher, but I havent always been one, so how does someone become a philosopher? And more fundamentally, why would anyone want to become one?

As a rare vocation, youd be forgiven for supposing that philosophers are an extinct species who once roamed the Athenian plazas during early antiquity, gesticulating poignantly and wearing togas. Well, happily they do exist today, sans the togas, largely unnoticed, behind the scenes on ethics boards, or engaging in fundamental first-principles critiques of.well.everything.

A question arises: if philosophers critique everything, how do they develop knowledge to criticise specialist areas? This becomes particularly poignant in an applied ethics context. My own personal journey, from Technologist to Philosopher, shows that one practically needs to be educated in two disciplines to become a bona fide philosopher.

When deciding what subjects to study, and what career to pursue, I was torn between multiple strong interests. In third place, Technology; in second place, Medicine; and in first place, Philosophy. In my case, I took the reverse path toward becoming a philosopher. Namely, I studied technology, worked in the biological sciences industry, and returned to academia with domain-specific expertise to enter into the philosophy sub-field of ethics. The beauty of philosophy for me, and the reason why I personally had the desire to pursue becoming a philosopher, is that philosophy, being able to critique everything, can powerfully converge disparate interests. It is this quality that made philosophy my first love, and so my PhD journey began, delving into the ethics of radical life extension.

Understanding Rejuvenation Biotechnologies

Recently, breakthroughs in rejuvenation biotechnologies, particularly those of the Strategies for Engineered Negligible Senescence (SENS) variant, have garnered little attention, and yet constitute steps towards a paradigm-altering event. SENS therapies, like maintaining classic cars to prolong their lifespan, seeks to do the same for our bodies as we age. SENS suggests that ageing is caused by the accumulation of cellular and molecular damage throughout the body over time, and advocates posit that by repairing or reversing this damage, it is possible to rejuvenate tissues and organs, thereby extending a persons healthy lifespan. Ultimately, by seeking to tackle age-related diseases at their root, via interventions such as stem cell therapies, the aim is to bring age-related diseases fully under comprehensive medical control. Overall, the eventual aim of SENS is to combine a panel of these therapies to combat all preceding causes of age-related diseases, and consequently, tackle ageing itself!

Although this sounds futuristic, there are therapies in various stages of development, with the furthest along being in clinical trials. Advocates claim that these therapies could, in due course, function well enough to rejuvenate a persons body to a youthful state. In effect, this is a process that, amongst other things, removes damage and replaces cells, enabling the body to regain a healthy condition. The outcome of extending good health is that it prolongs life, as it postpones the onset of age-related diseases until higher chronological ages. Accordingly, if someone repeatedly receives these therapies throughout life, this could constitute a potentially radical life-extending situation, as periods of poor health may be postponed repeatedly, allowing one to maintain optimal physiological functioning for longer, thereby delaying death itself!

A Case for Philosophical Inquiry The SENS approach to rejuvenation biotechnologies represents a bold vision for extending healthy lifespans and combating age-related diseases. However, realising this vision requires careful consideration of the ethical implications of extending human lifespan, making the SENS approach a question for philosophical research.

The most common ethical concerns for life-extending technologies are Health Equity i.e. fairness in health opportunities for all; Longevity/Population Dynamics i.e. understanding how long people live & how populations change; Environmental Impacts i.e. the effects of human activities on nature and Informed Consent/Autonomy i.e. respecting peoples right to make their own decisions.

Nevertheless, although important, these concerns dont engage with how this technology impacts what we find meaningful at the profoundest level as human beings. However, my research incorporates all the aforementioned ethical concerns and delves deeper into the realms of identity, purpose, and meaning in life, primarily through an existentialist lens.

Existentialism, as a philosophical theory, concerns itself with questions of: the nature of individual existence, authenticity of self, human freedom, and the search for purpose/meaning in life. It is via this prism that Im currently defining a taxonomy of values supported by radical life extension advocates, with this taxonomy categorising virtues like fairness, compassion, and autonomy, providing a structured framework for ethical analysis. In addition, Im exploring how a SENS-induced radically extended life may impact what we value. And next, I plan to explore whether the consequences of SENS therapies could result in mental ageing, in essence a feeling of listlessness, a sense of ennui, or a notion of world-weariness.

Overall, I hope that my research will deliver original insights to help us work towards a future where radically extended healthspans are possible, while fully prioritising and ensuring human well-being.

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Becoming an Expert: Exploring the Ethics of Radical Life Extension - News - University of Liverpool - News

Fort Lauderdale, FL, April 09, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The adage age is just a number embodies feeling young at any age. So whats more important when it comes to healthy aging: brain or brawn? In a recent survey of 4,100 Life Extension customers, 68% of whom were aged 61 or older, more than half ranked mental performance as the most important factor for feeling young for their age, while physical health came in a distant second place at 24%. To help people stay ahead of the aging game, Life Extension has launched Healthy Aging Powder, a triple-nutrient blend of taurine for cardiovascular health, lithium for a healthy mood, and spermidine from wheat germ extract to promote memory health. February 2024 survey of Life Extension customers.

We wanted to offer customers a way to promote a healthy aging process, so we focused on finding nutrients that support three cornerstones of aging gracefully: memory and mood health and a healthy heart, explained Life Extensions Vice President of Product Development, Glenn MacEachern, MBA.

According to Michael A. Smith, MD, Life Extensions Director of Education, aging healthily goes beyond flexing strong muscles; it also depends on heart health and, yes, cognition. Physical health is a no-brainer when it comes to healthy aging, but many dont realize that maintaining cognitive health and performance, including a healthy mood, is also crucial, Dr. Smith said. Weve come to accept our working memory slowing down and our mood souring as the norm. But we dont have to take age-related cognitive decline for granted. By tweaking our lifestyle, we can support memory health and maintain a healthy mood at every age.

Dr. Smith recommends choosing a dietary supplement that addresses the trifecta of healthy agingmemory and mood health, and a healthy heartas a proactive way to make those later years truly golden.

Healthy Aging Powder is a new addition to Life Extensions longevity supplements line, which also includes Optimized Resveratrol Elite to help protect against oxidative stress and NAD+ Cell Regenerator to support healthy cellular energy pathways. The easy-mix, unflavored powder blend contains no genetically modified ingredients.

About Life Extension For more than 40 years, Life Extension has pursued innovative advances in health, conducting rigorous clinical trials and setting some of the most demanding standards in the industry to offer a full range of quality vitamins and nutritional supplements and blood-testing services. Life Extensions Wellness Specialists provide personalized counsel to help customers choose the right products for optimal health,nutritionand personal care. To learn more, visit LifeExtension.com.

These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

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Mental Performance Is the #1 Factor for Healthy Aging, According to Life Extension Survey - GlobeNewswire

Lesson 10: Could Science Really Extend The Human Lifespan?

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Despite advances in medicine and nutrition, science has had difficulty extending the human lifespan beyond a certain age. Nevertheless, scientists are researching how to push beyond these limits and increase the duration and quality of a persons life. However, the big question remains: Could science really extend the human lifespan?

The science of life extension has one main goal, which is to prolong the human lifespan while maintaining youthful health. Since antiquity, people have pursued this goal through countless medicines, diets, and scientific procedures. But now, science has the knowledge to possibly make life extension a reality.

Life extension has been in the news lately because many entrepreneurs, especially within Silicon Valley, have publicly advocated and funded life extension research. Many of these advocates are incredibly optimistic because they see human aging not as inevitable but as an obstacle that will eventually be overcome.

Currently, there is no proven method of delaying or reversing the aging process. However, there are plenty of products available that will try to convince you otherwise.

Always be wary of any drug, food, or supplement that makes anti-aging claims. Also keep in mind that in the United States, the FDA only reviews supplements for safety, not for effectiveness. This means a supplement that claims to prevent aging could actually be useless. As for cosmetics that make anti-aging claims, these products are typically designed to hide the effects of aging, not reverse aging itself.

Essentially, if an anti-aging product seems too good to be true, it probably is.

Although life extension is being researched from numerous angles, genetic engineering has shown the most promise. Some methods involve replacing damaged cells with new ones, while others alter the mechanisms of DNA. In 2017, Harvard scientists discovered how to reverse aging in lab mice by changing how their DNA repairs itself. However, it's unclear if scientists will be able to duplicate this feat in humans.

While it can't delay aging itself, replacing worn organs could help people survive the more deteriorating effects of aging. Scientists have already grown kidneys and windpipes in laboratory settings using stem cells, and theyre researching how to create more complex organs like the heart and liver. There has also been significant progress with artificial organs, partially thanks to new technologies like 3D printing.

Currently, life extension is mostly research and educated guesses. Some experts believe we are not even close to breaking through the natural barriers of aging, while others believe some form of life extension will be widely available by the middle of the 21st century.

Almost everyone wants to live longer, healthier lives, but science has a long way to go before we overcome the natural limits of the human lifespan. Although life extension technology will continue to develop, major discoveries will take decades to realize, if they are realized at all.

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The Now: Could Science Really Extend The Human Lifespan? - GCFGlobal.org

Life Extension is a company that sells supplements and lab tests through its website. Customers can contact the customer support team at any time, but accessing a products certificate of analysis can be difficult.

Life Extension has been in business for more than 40 years. It claims that it sells science-backed products, such as vitamins, moisturizers, and functional foods that help target different health concerns, including weight gain, signs of skin aging, and digestive issues.

Regular customers can opt for the Autoship & Save program, which allows them to receive products every 30 or 60 days.

The company has a 12-month return policy. Customers who are unsatisfied with their purchase can return their item within this time frame. However, many customers claimed they found returning unwanted products very difficult.

Life Extension has a 1 out of 5 rating on Better Business Bureau (BBB) and 2.5 stars on Trustpilot. Customers wrote that they received a wrong order and some products caused frequent headaches, but they could not return them.

The company website does not provide lab test documents.

Positive reviews state that products are affordable and do not have a lot of fillers.

In 2017, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a warning letter stating that Life Extension stocks products as medications, which goes against its regulations. Life Extension suggests buying astragalus, blueberry, vitamin D, and other products from the website to treat breast cancer.

It also shared a post that mentions other items that prevent heart failure.

Life Extension may suit people looking to buy supplements that meet their daily recommended intake.

The website may serve as a one-stop shop, as it stocks vitamins, home tests, and functional foods. Individuals may use the service if they are buying different product formulations without checking multiple companies.

Vegetarians may find products that do not contain animal ingredients. However, these may still include beeswax or eggs.

Life Extension has pros and cons:

These are some of the products that a person can find on Life Extensions website:

The Female Basic Hormone Panel Blood Test measures the levels of different hormones, including estradiol, progesterone, and dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEA-S).

People do not have to fast to use this test. Life Extension recommends that people who supplement with hormones, including hormone replacement therapy (HRT), take their medication 2 hours before doing the test. The company also suggests doing the blood test between 8.0010.00 a.m.

In addition, Life Extension recommends individuals who are premenopausal take a blood sample on day 21 of their menstrual cycle. However, those who are postmenopausal can do the test on any day of the month.

This thyroid lab test provides an overview of thyroid function, as it measures the levels of:

There is no need to fast to use this test. Persons with low thyroid function may have drier skin, feel tired, and experience constipation.

Life Extension stocks a wide range of energy supplements. These are two products that people can buy to fight fatigue and feel energized.

These capsules contain is nicotinamide riboside, which may help increase energy levels and support heart health.

It also has resveratrol, which according to Life Extension, helps maintain longevity. A 2021 study notes that this may act as a life-extending agent, as it increased adult longevity in flies. However, more studies are needed.

A 2020 literature review mentions the side effects that resveratrol may cause:

The supplements are vegetarian, gluten, and GMO-free.

These capsules contain vitamin B6, sodium, carnosine, and pyrroloquinoline quinone (PQQ). PQQ is a vitamin that may aid longevity. It is naturally present in fruits and vegetables, such as green peppers, kiwi, and spinach.

A 2021 study found that PQQ has vitamin, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant qualities that may promote well-being, control symptoms, and prevent some illnesses.

The product is GMO and gluten-free.

Life Extension offers digestive supplements for people who may have gastric discomfort. It states that these products may help aid digestion, break down macronutrients, and relieve discomfort after eating a large meal.

A person can buy softgels, capsules, or vegetarian capsules.

These are two of the top digestive supplements:

Bloat Relief softgels are for individuals who regularly experience bloating, uncomfortable digestion, or occasional gas.

Ingredients include ginger extract, fennel seed oil, and turmeric.

The researchers behind a 2019 study note that ginger has anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and antitumor characteristics.

A 2020 review indicates that ginger may help relieve nausea and improve morning sickness in persons undergoing cancer treatment.

The National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health states that large doses of ginger can cause some side effects:

Life Extension recommends these supplements for people who follow a plant-based diet. They contain vegetarian-friendly enzymes, including lactase, lipase, and xylanase.

Lactase helps the body digest lactose, a type of sugar that is present in dairy products.

They are vegetarian and GMO-free.

Life Extension stocks products that moisturize and restore the skin by reducing the appearance of wrinkles and fine lines and increasing hydration.

These are the top skin care products available on the website:

This serum supports healthy aging and contains many ingredients, including ceramides, green tea leaf extract, and sunflower seed oil.

Ceramides have water-retaining properties that help hydrate the skin. Hydration can help reduce the appearance of fine lines that may be more visible on dry skin.

Some companies also stock sunscreens containing ceramides to help protect the skin from UV.

The serum is paraben-free and not tested on animals.

This stem cell cream contains many ingredients, including lactic acid, citric acid, lecithin, and seaweed extract. It helps protect the skin from environmental irritants.

The FDA states that lactic acid helps cleans the pores, reduce dark spots, and improve skin texture.

Life Extension provides other services:

Individuals who are interested in using Life Extensions services may consider the following:

People who wish to start taking vitamins may consider consulting a doctor to discuss their safety, as some supplements interact with other medications.

They may also see a doctor if they have symptoms of digestive problems, including:

These are commonly asked questions about Life Extension.

Life Extension has a low rating on BBB and Trustpilot. Reviews state that there are no lab tests on the company website, and returning a product may be problematic.

The company has also received a warning letter from the FDA, as it sometimes claims that its products can cure or treat health conditions.

Life Extension states that its vitamins are of high quality, and it only uses raw materials. However, products do not come with a lab test result. The company asks customers to call the customer service team to provide them with the document.

It is from the United States but gets raw materials from Japan and Europe.

According to the brand, Life Extension produces its vitamins in the U.S. in line with good manufacturing practices.

Life Extension is well-known for its supplements. It sells supplements that may help people experiencing stomach discomfort, bloating, and fatigue. It also has a range of skin care products that support healthy aging.

Lab tests, such as thyroid and hormone tests, are available to order on its website.

A person may have to consult their doctor first before buying any supplements. These may not be safe, especially for those who take other medications.

Originally posted here:
Life Extension Review 2023 - Medical News Today

Most people want to live a long and happy life or at least avoid a short and miserable one. If youre in that majority, then youre in luck. Over the last decade, a quiet research revolution has occurred in our understanding of the biology of ageing.

The challenge is to turn this knowledge into advice and treatments we can benefit from. Here we bust the myth that lengthening healthy life expectancy is science fiction, and show that it is instead scientific fact.

Theres plenty of evidence for the benefits of doing the boring stuff, such as eating right. A study of large groups of ordinary people show that keeping the weight off, not smoking, restricting alcohol to moderate amounts and eating at least five servings of fruit and vegetable a day can increase your life expectancy by seven to 14 years compared with someone who smokes, drinks too much and is overweight.

Cutting down calories even more - by about a third, so-called dietary restriction - improves health and extends life in mice and monkeys, as long as they eat the right stuff, though thats a tough ask for people constantly exposed to food temptation. The less extreme versions of time-restricted or intermittent fasting only eating during an eight-hour window each day, or fasting for two days every week is thought to reduce the risk of middle-aged people getting age-related diseases.

You cant outrun a bad diet, but that doesnt mean that exercise does not do good things. Globally, inactivity directly causes roughly 10% of all premature deaths from chronic diseases, such as coronary heart disease, type 2 diabetes and various cancers. If everyone on Earth got enough exercise tomorrow, the effect would probably be to increase healthy human life expectancy by almost a year.

But how much exercise is optimal? Very high levels are actually bad for you, not simply in terms of torn muscles or sprained ligaments. It can suppress the immune system and increase the risk of upper respiratory illness. Just over 30 minutes a day of moderate to vigorous physical activity is enough for most people. Not only does that make you stronger and fitter, it has been shown to reduce harmful inflammation and even improve mood.

However fit you are and well you eat, your immune system will, unfortunately, get less effective as you get older. Poor responses to vaccination and an inability to fight infection are consequences of this immunosenescence. It all starts to go downhill in early adulthood when the thymus a bowtie-shaped organ in your throat starts to wither.

That sounds bad, but its even more alarming when you realise that the thymus is where immune agents called T cells learn to fight infections. Closing such a major education centre for T cells means that they cant learn to recognise new infections or fight off cancer effectively in older people.

You can help a bit by making sure you have enough key vitamins, especially A and D. A promising area of research is looking at signals that the body sends to help make more immune cells, particularly a molecule called IL-7. We may soon be able to produce drugs that contain this molecule, potentially boosting the immune system in older people. Another approach is to use the food supplement spermidine to trigger immune cells to clear out their internal garbage, such as damaged proteins, which improves the elderly immune system so much that its now being tested as a way of getting better responses to COVID vaccines in older people.

Senescence is a toxic state that cells enter into as we get older, wreaking havoc across the body and generating chronic low-grade inflammation and disease essentially causing biological ageing. In 2009, scientists showed that middle-aged mice lived longer and stayed healthier if they were given small amounts of a drug called rapamycin, which inhibits a key protein called mTOR that helps regulate cells response to nutrients, stress, hormones and damage.

In the lab, drugs like rapamycin (called mTOR inhibitors) make senescent (aged) human cells look and behave like their younger selves. Though its too early to prescribe these drugs for general use, a new clinical trial has just been set up to test whether low-dose rapamycin can really slow down ageing in people.

Discovered in the soil of Easter Island, Chile, rapamycin carries with it significant mystique and [has been hailed] in the popular press as a possible elixir of youth. It can even improve the memory of mice with dementia-like disease.

But all drugs come with pros and cons and as too much rapamycin suppresses the immune system, many doctors are averse to even consider it to stave off age-related diseases. However, the dose is critical and newer drugs such as RTB101 that work in a similar way to rapamycin support the immune system in older people, and can even reduce COVID infection rates and severity.

Completely getting rid of senescent cells is another promising way forward. A growing number of lab studies in mice using drugs to kill senescent cells - so-called senolytics - show overall improvements in health, and as the mice arent dying of disease, they end up living longer too.

Removing senescent cells also helps people. In a small clinical trial, people with severe lung fibrosis reported better overall function, including how far and fast they could walk, after they had been treated with senolytic drugs. But this is only the tip of the iceberg. Diabetes and obesity, as well as infection with some bacteria and viruses, can lead to more senescent cells forming. Senescent cells also make the lungs more susceptible to COVID infection, and COVID makes more cells become senescent. Importantly, getting rid of senescent cells in old mice helps them to survive COVID infection.

Ageing and infection are a two-way street. Older people get more infectious diseases as their immune systems start to run out of steam, while infection drives faster ageing through senescence. Since ageing and senescence are inextricably linked with both chronic and infectious diseases in older people, treating senescence is likely to improve health across the board.

It is exciting that some of these new treatments are already looking good in clinical trials and may be available to us all soon.

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Life extension: the five most promising methods so far

Do you want to live a better, healthier and longer life? Me too.

Lets go back to 1937, when Albert Szent-Gyrgyi won a Nobel Prize for his discovery of ascorbic acidvitamin Cthat enables the body to efficiently use carbohydrates, fats, and protein (I use it a lot during cold and flu season, you?). It was a massively consequential discovery, as it not only saved and extended countless lives, but it also contributed to the foundations of modern nutrition. Szent-Gyrgyi, himself, was blessed with a long life; he died in 1986 at the age of 93. But he might just as well be known for what he said on his 90th birthday: I wish I could be 75 again!

No doubt, that comment elicits more than a few eyerolls today. Especially since the CDC has recently downgraded American life expectancy to just 77 years. But could 75 someday be the new 40an age by which, like Szent-Gyrgyi, were only hitting our stride? Well, if the burgeoning activity of the life extension industry is any indication, we may actually be on the cusp of making it soand enjoying life to the fullest right up to the extended end. Which brings us to the morbid thought of mortalitythat end state most of us seek to delay, if not dodge.

It may strike many as common sense that most causes of death are what we have come to understand as age-related: The longer we live, the more likely we are to develop, for example, heart disease, cancer, or Alzheimers. Therefore, a reasonable thing one can do to prevent the development of age-related diseases, is to, well, not age. It turns out thats actually not as flippant as it sounds. So, is that possible and how do we get there?

In short, all strategies for life extension revolve around a combination of three factors, all working together to fortify health and wellness for a longer haul: 1) things you should stop doing (I have a list which I mostly ignore, you?), 2) things you should start doing (honestly part of my same list), and 3) adopting the contributions of new health and wellness technologies and scientific discoveries that are helping to curb aging. All three comprise parts of a budding ecosystem that is growing into a multibillion-dollar industry on an exponential trajectory to displace everything we have come to understand as modern medicine. If just what we know today were fully embraced and actualized, the global economy could also be transformedand with it, a renaissance of human flourishing.

And we could use it. When ranking countries for life expectancy, the United States often doesnt make the top 50despite having the highest healthcare costs per capita in the world, by far. In other words, maybe were doing it wrong.

Clearly, somethings got to give. Right?

None of this is lost on the investment community, which is set to plow billions into a nascent industry that is fast approaching its inflection point. Driving that inflection is a fundamental pivot from treating symptomsthe bread and butter of the rapidly collapsing medical-industrial complexto addressing the root causes of aging and disease. Its a shift that is ushering in a new and immensely disruptive paradigm that some analysts envision creating a global market approaching $300B by 2030. Its likely bigger when you add in personalized skin health and beautynot to mention food.

Again, like many such watershed moments, this is a story of convergences. Its a perfect storm comprising new and surprising discoveries about the workings of the human body, myriad innovative technologies, coupled with an ever-increasing geriatric population. Now add to this mix an explosion in chronic diseases and a growing demand for more Personalized, Precise, Preventive, and Participatory aging therapeutics (the so-called 4 Ps) and we have a movement.

Beyond its potential for profitability, though, the longevity movement benefits from a certain intrinsic appeal: it could be a tremendous positive impact for humanity. Startups and leading global organizations are diligently at work developing the next level of health, beauty and wellness products, services and treatmentsfrom delivering mass-personalization AI technology to help consumers choose at Revieve, to science-driven wellness at Thorne HealthTech, to curing Alzheimers at Genentechall with investments beginning to show promise.

Another leading catalyst in shifting the world away from the traditional disease-focused regime in favor of targeting root causes of age-advancing chronic illnesses, is Viomea life sciences company that has pioneered the field of human gut microbiome diagnostics and treatment. I took a look under the hood to learn whats behind this longevity science and how are they rebooting an industry.

The big idea behind Viomes science is simultaneously cutting edge and ancient (stay with me here as we unpack this). It was actually first articulated in the 4th century BCby Hippocrates of Kos. Let food be thy medicine, he proclaimed, and medicine be thy food. As investors in next-gen food companies, like Manna Tree, will tell youhe was onto something.

You can think of the gut microbiome as the Chief Architect of your health. The trillions of microbes that reside in your gut help you digest food, absorb nutrients, maintain a healthy weight, neutralize toxins, fight off bad bacteria, and many other functions that are responsible for keeping you alive and healthy. How the microbes in your gut respond to the food you eat creates a chain reaction that can be beneficial to you or, if you're eating the wrong foods, can promote inflammatory activity and microbial imbalance, or, dysbiosis. In other words, the very conditions that work to curtail lifespan.

It turns out that illnesses such as cancer, diabetes, heart disease, stroke, Parkinsons, Crohns, Alzheimers, arthritis, depression, and many other debilitating conditions share a common denominatorschronic inflammation for one. In fact, chronic inflammation is both a precursor and prerequisite to the onset and development of todays deadliest diseasesand aging. And all these conditions are pointing to the gut.

Its to these ends that Viomes 50+ health scores reveal ones underlying contributors to poor healthand more importantly, to identifying the microbiome-based correctives that can extend both lifespan and healthspan. Affirming both Hippocrates and Viome, Dr. Sherry A. Rogers astutely quipped, The road to health is paved with good intestines!

In a free-market, innovation-economy, Viome is certainly not alone in this endeavor. Life Biosciences and many others are also targeting the biology of aging. The emerging sector operates on the premise that aging is in fact modifiable, being caused by biological mechanisms that can be targeted therapeutically. Elysium is another. It is working to make practical the myriad scientific advancements in aging research that in turn are leading to compelling new developments that will, fundamentally redefine every aspect of how we think about healthcare. Sampo Parkkinen, Revieve's Founder and CEO agrees and believes that the world's leading brands and retailers can help consumers personalize their health, beauty, and wellness through relationship-driven commerce: "Bringing personalized solutions to worlds consumers must go beyond healthcare, into the daily products, services, and treatments people use, from skincare and beauty products to supplements and food, it should all be on the table where consumers shop, he comments."

The key to moving life expectancy forward is turning back the biological clock. The old clich goes, If I knew I was going to live this long, Id have taken better care of myself! Or, as one of my Moms favorites, actress Mae West, said, Youre never too old to become younger. The good news is that theres no time like the present to reboot and begin preparing for a healthy future. And lifestylemarked by a nutritionally-rich diet (most tell us to ditch the fast food, but not everyone can), proper exercise (yes, there is an inverse relationship between physical activity and mortality), adequate sleep (I dont get enough, you?), good stress management (how are you doing?)is also central to any life extension regime. We have been told all of this before, yet we still struggle.

That said, a central goal of lifestyle modification is not only to reduce the incidence of disease but promote healthy, successful aging. Its true that ones biological age need not match chronological age. Consider Viome founder Naveen Jain. I am 63 years old, he says, but my biological age is now 10 years younger. I have achieved this in the last two years, simply by understanding how my body works, using Viomes tools, which tell me what to eat and why and what to avoid and why. It then details the specific nutrients my body needs to live a disease-free life.

In addition to its AI-driven gut microbiome tests, the company is beginning to produce personalized supplements and formulas that combine the necessary nutrients into daily capsules, thus eliminating the need to stock dozens of products. Consequently, Naveen actually does anticipate reaching 75 but registering a biological age of just 40. Not that he expects to age in reverse, a la The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. Nor is this about achieving immortality. Rather, longevity science is really more about enabling people to be as healthy as possible for as long as they are alive. It's about having the strength, energy, and vitality to do what they want to do, even possibly at 100.

I know what youre thinking, Naveen is the CEO and didnt actor George Burns live to be 100 while famously smoking cigars every day? Yes, however, Ive watched his positive transformation over the years, along with Viome customer data, the results are remarkably noticeable (but alas, Im not a healthcare professional). The early industry data now has supplement manufacturers, and companies like Amway, taking note and working determine how to globally scale and deliver personalized nutrition through mass-customization. As I have said at Northwestern Universitys Kellogg School of Management, look for a variety of co-created innovation and delivery partnershipsbetween upstarts and global 1000sin this space starting next year.

Want another view on potential impacts? Longer lifespans are an effect of the measures anyone can take to improve their healthand it seems to also be an emerging societal and economic imperative. Consider, for example, if everyone in the world were to lower their biological age by even a few years, the global disease burden would be reduced dramatically. Today, according to the CDC, six in 10 U.S. adults suffer chronic health conditions; four in 10 have two or more of these diseases. Some of these diseases are both debilitating and expensive. According to estimates by the World Economic Forum, between 2010 and 2030, the total cost to the worlds health systems will approach $50T (yes trillions). Could we cut that in half? The leaders in the life extension spaceboth startups and the big-dogsbelieve so. And supporting data is mounting.

Looking for a bottom line? Me too, hows this: if you can maintain good gut health, then that good gut health will keep the rest of you healthy. If, on the other hand, the gut microbiota are in dysbiosis, then youre up for diseases caused by the chronic inflammation that inevitably resultsthe very conditions that are know to slash human life expectancy by half.

When the experts declare the upper limits of life expectancy, we believe it like some law of the universe. When someone dies at, say, 80, we accept that theyve lived a good long life. Weve become conditioned to believe it, and like so many other things connected to ones mindset, it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. Normal cholesterol in a society where its normal to drop dead of a heart attack really should not be considered a good thing. Right? We dont achieve more than we expect. But if we do expect more, it must begin with an understanding of whats really going on in the body. We are starting to do that now, thanks to the biological, cellular, and genetic ground truths established by the sciences and technologies advanced by the likes of Viome, Life BioSciences, Elysium, and many other emerging players the world will soon hear about.

But what about genes? you might ask. Surely, ones genetic makeup affects lifespan, right? Interestingly, we are learning that genetics may be responsible for only a very small percentage of human diseasesthe vast majority are triggered by environmental and lifestyle factors. And both are of tremendous consequence to the makeup of ones gut microbiome, which, we are now understanding, can be the chief driver of genetic expression (or epigenetics), turning genes on and off depending upon which microbes are present in the gut.

So, while some people do hit the genetic lottery, like George Burns, the rest of us can improve our luck through lifestyle choices. But the differencenow those choices need to be informed. This is where Viomes Human Gene Expression test comes in. With its origins in biodefense science developed at Los Alamos National Lab, it reveals a true state of ones overall health, the measurable potential for developing disease, and the nutritional corrective actions one can take to restore the homeostasis that is essential to healthy longevity. Again, it seems if you can improve the health of your gut microbiome, you could also take some of your genetic fate into your own hands.

In the end, though, when all is said and done, given the events of the past few years, many have learned that there is more to life than increasing its length. To this end, we would all do well to heed the words of the 14th century holy man who wrote, It is vanity to wish for length of life, and to care little that the life should be well spent. Indeed, if were to be older, well also need to be wiser.

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Want To Live Longer? How Life Extension Industry Will Reboot ... - Forbes

Sergeyis the founder of the Longevity Vision Fund.

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As founder of Longevity Vision Fund, I am often asked about the most promising life extension breakthroughs, from early cancer diagnostics to human avatars and everything in between. The simple answer is that there are many but thats probably not the kind of answer you were looking for!

Instead, lets look at the latest longevity breakthroughs working on each of the five major levels of biological organization (cell, tissue, organ, organ system and organism) and what they each aim to accomplish.

1. Cells: Reprogram

Biologists classify cells as the simplest level of organization in a living organism. Aging on a cellular level is often defined as the accumulation of destructive changes caused by changes to gene expression that gradually shift our cells to aged state.

This is why its particularly exciting that a new study demonstrated that it is possible to partially reprogram old cells, allowing them to regain youthful function. Led by a team of researchers including the legendary Dr. David Sinclair, scientists used cellular reprogramming to reinstate youthful function and successfully rejuvenate old cells in the eyes of mice successfully restoring vision in a mouse version of glaucoma.

The process used by the scientists in this study, REVIVER (which stands for "recovery of information via epigenetic reprogramming"), has shown that old tissues can "keep" a record of youthful epigenetic information that can be accessed for functional age reversal.

2. Tissue: Regenerate

Numerous cells working together toward one common goal are called tissue. Tissue and organ regeneration company LyGenesis has shown that it can regrow functioning ectopic organs in a patients lymph nodes using cellular therapy.

LyGenesis co-founder Dr. Eric Lagasse first demonstrated that allogeneic hepatocytes, injected into lymph nodes of mice with diseased livers, would regenerate and take over normal liver functions. The study was also conducted in larger mammals with equally impressive results: Liver tissue grown in pigs lymph nodes could treat genetic liver diseases. Dr. Lagasse and his team believe this method could ultimately help people with various liver diseases, including end-stage liver disease (ESLD) with clinical trials in humans set to begin later in 2021.

With almost 114,000 people in the United States on the waiting list for an organ transplant, LyGenesis could relieve suffering for many. Instead of one donor organ treating one patient, LyGenesis could allow tissue from one donor organ to treat many patients. The company, whose investors include Juvenescence and my organization, Longevity Vision Fund, also has plans for kidney, pancreas and thymus regeneration. LyGenesis achievements are a crucial step toward whole organ regeneration that could, along with other upcoming technologies, allow us to live to 200 (or at least beyond the commonly accepted maximum of 120 years).

3. Organ: Rewire

The brain is the body's most complex organ, with an impressive 86 billion neurons in the human brain (all of which are in use). Neuralink, a company founded by Elon Musk, wants to make it even more functional.

The company is developing a brain-computer interface that will potentially give us the ability to control computers and smartphones with our minds! Neuralink has already demonstrated that it can record a rats brain activity via thousands of tiny electrodes implanted in its brain. Musk has also unveiled a pig with a coin-sized computer chip, which he described kind of like a Fitbit in your skull with tiny wires."

While a Fitbit in your skull may seem fun but hardly essential, imagine what the company could do for patients with severe age-related neurological conditions, such as dementia or Parkinsons. Neuralink is preparing for human trials and, if successful, first plans to use their devices to help paraplegics with tasks such as making mouse clicks on a computer.

4. Organ System: Reverse (The Epigenetic Clock)

An organ system is a group of organs working together to perform one or more biological functions. Our bodies are made up of 11 basic organ systems that include the nervous system, cardiovascular system and more.

Dr. Greg Fahyhas shown (for the first time in humans!) that it may be possible to reverse biological age. Participants in the trial reduced their biological age by two and a half years (on average) after one year of treatment. In addition to the reduction in biological age, the participants also showed signs of immune system rejuvenation.

The reduction in the biological age was measured by world-renowned scientist Steve Hovarths epigenetic clock. This clock works by analyzing gene expression alterations (that change throughout our lifespan in a predictable manner) to estimate a persons biological age.

5. Organism: Rewrite

We are entering an era where discovery of diseases is more often conducted at the genome level and where a growing number of studies are finding overlap between "common" and "rare" human diseases, further enhancing our understanding of the ways in which they develop. So, wouldnt it be nice if we could find a "cure for all and any diseases"and be done with it already?

It looks like we are close. Prime editing (a new generation of genome editing) can, in principle, put 89% of human diseases in purview. Prime editing may allow researchers to edit more types of genetic mutations than current "state of the art" CRISPR. Since prime editing doesnt rely on the ability of cells to divide to help make the desired changes in the DNA (unlike CRISPR), it could be used to correct genetic mutations in cells that often don't divide such as those in the nervous system. This could provide a cure for a number of previously untreatable diseases, such as Parkinson's and Huntington's.

The search for a single cause and, therefore, cure for aging has been replaced with the view that it is a highly complex and multifactorial process. Therefore, the longevity breakthroughs listed above are complementary to (rather than in competition with) each other in our quest to put an end to age-related diseases.

Forbes Technology Council is an invitation-only community for world-class CIOs, CTOs and technology executives. Do I qualify?

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Will You Live To 200? Five Levels Of Breakthroughs In ...

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Dietary supplement company

The Biomedical Research & Longevity Society, formerly the Life Extension Foundation (LEF), is a company founded in 1980 to extend the healthy human lifespan by discovering methods to control aging and eradicate disease. Along with the Life Extension Buyer's Club, which sells vitamins and supplements, the Life Extension Foundation (LEF) was headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. It also has a call center location in Las Vegas, Nevada. The company changed its name in 2018 to Biomedical Research & Longevity Society.[1]

Along with the Life Extension Buyer's Club, the Life Extension Foundation (LEF) was headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The Life Extension Foundation (LEF) was primarily funded by the sale of nutritional supplements to members of an affiliated entity, the Life Extension Buyer's Club.[citation needed] The Life Extension Buyer's Club was incorporated in Nevada, and has a separate EIN employer number than the Life Extension Foundation. Its name was changed to the Biomedical Research & Longevity Society in 2018.[1]

In 1981 LEF recommended DHEA, in 1983 it recommended low-dose aspirin, and also in 1983 was the first organization in the United States to recommend coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10). In 1992 it introduced melatonin into its product line.

The Biomedical Research & Longevity Society, which was originally named Life Extension Foundation (LEF), was founded by Saul Kent and William Faloon in 1980.[2][3]

In 1987, the FDA raided the Life Extension Foundation's warehouse, and charged Kent and Faloon with 27 counts, including distributing unapproved drugs. 11 years later, all, by then, 56 FDA charges were dismissed by a federal judge. In 1994, Kent and Faloon opened the FDA Holocaust Museum to highlight millions of deaths they felt were caused by the FDA withholding or delaying approval of life-saving drugs and treatments.[4]

In a 2009 tax filing, the company declared assets of over $25 million and netted more than $3 million on revenue of more than $18 million that year.[5]

In May 2013, the Internal Revenue Service revoked the Life Extension Foundations tax-exempt status, retroactive to 2006.[6] Forbes reported that "The IRS' problem with the Foundation is [...] an entirely worldly one: it asserts the membership organization's operations seem to be too entwined with the for-profit Life Extension Buyers Club."[5] On August 7, 2013, LEF filed a Complaint for Declaratory Judgment in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia challenging the IRS' allegations.[7]

In 2018, foundation's tax-exempt status was reinstated retroactive to the date it was revoked, May 2013.[8][9] The Life Extension Foundation also changed its name the same year, becoming the Biomedical Research and Longevity Society, Inc., or BRLS.[1]

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Biomedical Research & Longevity Society - Wikipedia

Conscious Consumption : Sustainable Shopping Through Clothing Life Extension and BEAUTYCYCLE with Nordstrom  Marketscreener.com

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Conscious Consumption : Sustainable Shopping Through Clothing Life Extension and BEAUTYCYCLE with Nordstrom - Marketscreener.com

About Life Extension

Life Extension is a natural brand that provides you with supplements based on scientific research to help with many different symptoms and conditions.

Carrying a range of products that aid with brain function, weight loss, energy, and more, anyone can find a supplement to suit their personal needs from this company.

Life Extension has already gained over 48K followers on Instagram and 344K on Facebook, making them popular with their fans online.

With personalized wellness specialists and magazine subscriptions available to help you with your supplemental needs, Life Extension has a variety of options for new customers who want extra information.

Through this Life Extension review, Ill be exploring the brands products, customer ratings, promotions, and more to help you decide whether these are the right supplements for you.

Life Extension is a health and wellness brand that has been around for over 40 years, bringing the public a variety of natural and nutritious supplements to help improve your day-to-day life.

Using science-backed ingredients, Life Extension has found a way to spread their vision of nutrition throughout the world.

Life Extension is based in Fort Lauderdale, FL, and manufactures its supplements in the US. Their products are GMP-approved, which means that they are made with Good Manufacturing Practices.

Life Extensions mission is simply that they are committed to finding new ways to empower you to live a healthier, richer life. The brand has their own lab through which they conduct experiments to find the best ingredients.

I will now use this Life Extension review to provide you with a few main highlights of the brand and help you gain more of an understanding of their supplements.

Read on to find out further details about Life Extensions supplements.

If you feel like your mind isnt as sharp as youd like, Life Extension Magnesium Threonate may be your best bet. This supplement is ideal for anyone hoping for a quick brain boost with long-lasting effects.

With a focus on healthy memory and youthful cognitive function, Magnesium Threonate can help you get your mind back on track.

Almost everyone has experienced the struggle of trying to focus when all you want to do is relax. Brain fog isnt easy to fight, but sometimes it can feel like theres so much in your brain that you feel like its overflowing.

Magnesium is vital for brain function, and unfortunately, your brain starts losing magnesium as you age. Because you dont get much magnesium from your diet and environment, supplements like these can give you the extra help that youre missing.

Life Extension Magnesium Threonate comes in bottles of 90 vegetarian capsules, meant to last you for 30 days. The brand offers either a one-time purchase or a subscription option for the following prices:

The brand website also offers you a 10% discount on your order by buying 4 bottles at once ($27 each).

You can find this supplement on the following retail partner websites for a one-time purchase:

The main ingredient of Life Extension Magnesium Threonate is magnesium. Magnesium[1] is essential for brain health, but it starts to deplete with age.

Although mild magnesium deficits arent that noticeable, they can get to a much more serious level. This is reflected in the number of neurodegenerative brain diseases that people experience in their old age.

Magnesium[2] is crucial in providing your brain with a boost, helping with many different cognitive functions like memory and learning. This is especially useful for people as they age because their natural magnesium levels start to drop.

Magnesium can even help after the experience of traumatic brain injury[3], protecting against neurological deficits.

Life Extension Magnesium Threonate comes with three major benefits for everyone:

When you take Life Extension Magnesium Threonate, the magnesium makes its way to your nervous system and brain. This ingredient boosts your natural properties and strengthens the connections to provide you with a long-term brain boost and improved health overall.

You should take 3 capsules of Life Extension Magnesium Threonate a day unless a healthcare provider has recommended something different. Youll see the best results if you take this supplement daily.

Losing weight isnt a one-step process. It requires many different factors coming together to make the change happen.

For most people, that can include eating well, exercising regularly, and avoiding all other temptations. But one thing people forget to add to their healthcare regimen is an excellent natural supplement.

Now Im not saying that taking a supplement can replace the hard work that comes with everything you need to do to lose weight. Still, consuming certain vitamins and minerals can make a difference that can make the process less of a struggle.

With Life Extension Body Trim and Appetite Control, you get the chance to continue making healthy choices without feeling the temptations of all the yummy cravings around you.

With its primary focus on reducing cravings and keeping you full after every meal, you may realize that your weight loss journey has taken on a much more efficient route.

Life Extension Body Trim and Appetite comes in bottles of 30 vegetarian capsules, meant to last you for 30 days. The brand offers either a one-time purchase or a subscription option for the following prices:

The brand website also offers an 11% discount when you buy 4 bottles at once. Each supplement will then cost you $20.

You can find this supplement at Walmart for $27 (one-time purchase).

Life Extension Body Trim and Appetite is made from an ingredient named Metabolaid, a unique compound made of lemon verbena extract and hibiscus.

Lemon verbena extract is derived from a plant, while hibiscus is a flower. Both ingredients have great digestive properties[4] and are useful in helping you control your appetite and curb unhealthy cravings.

There are many nutritional benefits of the ingredients in Life Extension Body Trim and Appetite, all of which work together to provide you with the best support for your digestion and weight loss.

By keeping you full and sated after a regular meal, youre not tempted to eat anything unhealthy, preventing you from overeating.

Life Extension Magnesium Threonate comes with the following benefits for those who use it:

Life Extension Body Trim and Appetite works by helping to control your appetite. A huge portion of weight gain is knowing when to stop eating, even when youre full.

So, the main ingredient in this supplement provides you with a signal so that you dont stuff yourself with food that you cant handle.

Its important that you pair this supplement with a healthy diet and exercise, so you can see the best results of this supplement. The supplement alone may not help you see the results youd like without a healthy lifestyle.

Thats why this supplement comes with a free app for you to track your progress and receive encouragement on your hard work.

You should take 1 capsule of this supplement a day before breakfast. Youll notice the best results if you take the supplement daily.

When youre so busy with life, it can get easy to get down in the dumps. No one thinks about using dietary supplements to get their energy back, but believe it or not, there are natural ingredients out there that can charge your metaphorical batteries and get you back to your peppy self.

Life Extension NAD+ Cell Regenerator and Resveratrol is an energy-boosting supplement that can jump-start your day at a cellular level. With the goal of longevity, this supplement aims to boost your cellular energy, improve your cellular metabolism, and encourage healthy aging.

Life Extension NAD+ Cell Regenerator and Resveratrol comes in bottles of 30 vegetarian capsules, meant to last you for 30 days. The brand offers either a one-time purchase or a subscription option for the following prices:

The brand website also offers a discount of 11% for a 4-pack ($40 each).

You can find this supplement on the following retail partner websites (one-time purchase):

The serving size for this supplement is one capsule, and it contains the following ingredients:

Non-active ingredients include silica, maltodextrin, microcrystalline cellulose, vegetable stearate, and vegetable cellulose to form the capsule itself.

This supplement has a few different ingredients. However, the two main ingredients are Niagen and resveratrol, which come together to provide you with cellular health and energy.

Your body naturally produces vitamin B3, which works to repair your cells and make you look younger by releasing the essential enzyme NAD+[5]. Thats exactly what Niagen[6] does as well.

Both Niagen and vitamin B3 are alternatives to each other, so this supplement contains an ingredient that may slow down aging.

Resveratrol[7] generally promotes and maintains health and longevity, ensuring that you live a long and healthy life. More specifically, this ingredient can have an impact on diseases and keep you safe throughout old age.

Other properties of resveratrol[8] include antioxidative, anti-inflammatory, and anticancer properties.

All ingredients within this supplement work together to increase NAD+ levels in your body, which has enormous benefits for middle-aged and older adults[9].

Life Extension NAD+ Cell Regenerator and Resveratrol can provide you with the following benefits:

The two main ingredients of Niagen and resveratrol work together to heal your cells and keep you healthy and young in the long-term.

Niagen increases NAD+ levels in your system to increase cellular energy, while resveratrol[10] works by managing and even preventing diseases, conditions, and aiding recovery from injuries.

You should take 1 capsule a day of Life Extension NAD+ Cell Regenerator and Resveratrol with or without food. Youll see the best results if you take this supplement daily for a whole month.

Based on this Life Extension review, many products by this brand cater to anyone over 18. This isnt uncommon, as most supplements contain doses and ingredients that may not be suited for young children.

A product like the Magnesium Threonate would be a better fit for you if youre looking to boost your brain function, whereas Body Trim and Appetite Control would be better for you if youre struggling with losing weight and keeping it off.

Meanwhile, a product like NAD+ Cell Regenerator and Resveratrol is more inclusive and almost anyone can benefit from using it, as it helps provide you with long-term cellular energy.

Please note that if you are pregnant, nursing, taking medication for any serious illnesses, have a weakened immune system, or have any severe allergies or reactions, you should speak with your doctor before taking Life Extension supplements.

Because Life Extension supplements come from natural ingredients that mimic the bodys vitamins and minerals, there are no official side effects reported about any of the products.

However, as this brand works with dietary supplements, there is still a risk that you may experience stomach cramps, nausea, or poor bowel movements. This is especially likely if you dont follow the suggested dosage.

This Life Extension review found quite a positive reaction to the products I went over. Customers rated the products highly with detailed success stories posted on the brand website, as well as partner websites like Amazon, Walmart, and iHerb.

The Life Extension products I reviewed posted the following ratings on the brand website:

Life Extension targets a variety of different goals with their many products, including improved brain function, weight loss, and boosted energy. The customers who have tried their supplements mostly had great things to say about the benefits that they experienced.

One satisfied customer commented on the change he noticed after taking Magnesium Threonate for 2 months, stating, I experienced an immediate shift in mental clarity on the first dose. Now after two months, I am excited about improved thought organization, increased multitasking ability, and increased short and long term memory.

This was supported by another post on Amazon, where a customer made a comment along the same lines, saying:

Morning of Day 4 the brain fog is gone. After 3 years of the cloud living in my consciousness slowly putting me to sleep, I have taken initiative and made the effort to stop the numbing effects of whatever it is that is slowing me down and not caring.

The Body Trim and Appetite supplement also has positive ratings. One customer commented, After taking this supplement for about a week, I did notice a change in my tendency to snack. The evening is when I tend to snack, not because Im hungry but because I have developed a really bad habit to do so. Its really helping!

The few negative reviews about this supplement were regarding the lack of results, but since all bodies are different, it can take people an additional time to see results.

The brand also holds a 3.1/5-star rating on Trustpilot, with 60% of reviews ranking as excellent. Most customer complaints are about shipping times and customer service, though that does imply that very few people have problems with the products themselves.

All in all, most people who tried the Life Extension products were happy with their purchase, and some even mentioned using them for multiple years. The brands supplements have helped many people and have reached the goals they set out to!

Based on my evaluation of the brand, its products, and the many reviews posted on multiple platforms, I think Life Extension is legit.

The brand has very clear details posted on their website and all third-party retailer sites regarding how each product works and what they are made of.

There are many customer reviews that have commented on the benefits theyve experienced since starting to take Life Extension products which make their effectiveness believable.

There are no complaints about Life Extensions shipping policy, and it seems like everyone who placed an order got their products right on time. Plus, the brand has a transparent approach to deliveries, where theyve outlined the different delivery times and prices on their website.

This Life Extension review can say with confidence that this is a legitimate supplement brand that has done its research.

This Life Extension review finds that this brand is worth purchasing for many different reasons. The variety of products, the effectiveness of the ingredients, and the glowing customer reviews are only the tip of the iceberg when you consider the positive features of this brand.

On the off chance that you buy a Life Extension supplement and discover that its not right for you, you have 12 whole months to contact the customer service team and either get a replacement product or a credit on your account.

Overall, I believe that Life Extension is worth a try.

Life Extension offers a subscription program on their brand website that allows you to get a discount of up to 11% off the retail prices of their products. If you subscribe, you will receive your supplements delivered every month.

The brand also offers the same discount for customers who opt for a one-time purchase but buy four bottles of the supplement instead of just one.

You can purchase Life Extension from its main website at https://www.lifeextension.com/. Some products can also be found at Amazon, Walmart, and iHerb.

Unfortunately, no Life Extension is not vegan. However, their products are 100% vegetarian. If you have a specific dietary restriction, you should be careful to consume Life Extension supplements. They may contain ingredients derived from live animals, such as eggs, dairy, or beeswax.

Yes, all Life Extension products are 100% gluten-free. You are safe to consume this brands supplements if you have this dietary restriction.

Life Extension offers a few different shipping options within the domestic US, including the following:

For shipping internationally, the delivery costs may vary based on where you placed the order. You can find the list of countries that Life Extension ships to at the following link: https://www.lifeextension.com/vitamins-supplements/shipping/shipping-information.

Life Extension offers 12 months to return your products without a penalty. Thats a whole year for you to change your mind! If youre unhappy with your purchase, make sure to contact the customer service team, and you can get your products replaced or add a credit to your account.

Return policies on other websites may vary.

If you have any more questions that this Life Extension review didnt answer, you can contact the company directly. They are available at different times via the following contact information:

You can also find this information at the following website: https://www.lifeextension.com/quest-com

For more health and wellness products, take a peak at these brands:

Restore Hyper Wellness

Love Wellness

Rae Wellness

Originally posted here:
Life Extension Review - Must Read This Before Buying

In 2016, an American real-estate investor named James Strole established the Coalition for Radical Life Extension, a nonprofit based in Arizona which aims to galvanise mainstream support for science that might one day significantly prolong human life. Standards in modern medicine are allowing us to live longer now than ever before. But that is not Stroles concern. What good are a few more measly years? He is interested in extending life not by days and weeks, but by decades and even centuries, to the degree that mortality becomes optional an end to The End. The deathist paradigm has to go, a line on the Coalitions website reads. Its time to look beyond the past of dying to a future of unlimited living. It describes its supporters as early-adopting advocates, numbering in the thousands.

Life extensionists (or longevists, or immortalists) fit neatly into two types. The first are rationalists: scientific researchers at the coalface of gerontology, the study of ageing, chipping away at the many technical difficulties of ending entropy. Strole is the second type. A businessman, he has no formal scientific training, but is nevertheless resolutely committed to the cause, eager to rally behind new findings. He hopes to live indefinitely, or at least until 150. But he is ultimately reliant on researchers finding a way. Consider him less a gerontological groupie than a politely optimistic mega-fan, sitting on the sidelines of science, willing on a major breakthrough.

He isnt alone. Life extensionists have become a fervent and increasingly vocal bunch. Famously, the community includes venture capitalists and Silicon Valley billionaires, non-gerontologists all, and nearly all men, who consider death undesirable and appear to have made so much money they require infinite life in which to spend it. But now mere mortals are joining the throng, heads filled with fantasies of forever. Humans have lusted after immortality for as long as they have been alive. So far the quest has been unsuccessful we still die! But good news: paradise is reported to be closer now than ever before, and private clinics and online pharmacies are promising to help get us there, there being the future, all of it.

Strole has been an evangelist of human immortality since he was a child, when his grandmother died, and he felt a pain you cant even describe, its so deep in your gut. He was 11, still new to the world, and he came to think of death, like most of us do at some point or another, as deeply unfair.

In the early 1970s, when he was in his 20s, he began touring the US as a public speaker, sharing what was then limited gerontological research, but nevertheless extolling its possibilities and advocating the anti-ageing benefits of a positive mindset: Isnt life great? You can live forever if you really try! Because Strole is not scientifically accredited, he mostly based his patter around inspirational healthy-living tips, much of which would now fall under the umbrella of common-sense wellness: exercise, eat well but not too much, look after yourself. But still his message seemed radical, and he was not always well-received. Audiences wary of Stroles ideas condemned him for testing Gods will, or disrupting the natural order. His concepts ran counter to the common world view that we live and then we die. Particularly aggravated spectators referred to him as the devil. Every now and then he received death threats.

Nevertheless, he persisted. He considered himself fortunate to work in a field that meant he was privy to insider information and he became convinced a significant breakthrough was around the corner. To fully prepare his body for the rigmarole of centuries-long life, he adopted a strict health regimen. He fasted, juiced, cleansed and devoured supplements, inviting audiences to do the same. Eventually, a community formed, driven by a shared, urgent aversion to death. We felt then how important it was to do everything you could to stay alive, he says

Strole is now 70. He lives in Scottsdale, Arizona, a desert town. In the life-extensionist mode, he avoids dairy and rarely touches bread, though he devours a whole heap of other things. Recently his diet has included pills, branded Cognitive, which he takes twice a day and claims have all sorts of nourishing effects on his brain. (What good is maintaining the body if not the mind?) The pills are part of a self-directed anti-ageing process that requires a lot of swallowing. On some days, Strole takes 70 supplements, including a tablet that energises the mitochondria (mitochondria produce energy) and whose effects resemble a shot of coffee, minus the jitters, as well as vitamins, multi-nutrients and metformin, a diabetes drug that has become so popular among life extensionists that one referred to it as the aspirin of anti-ageing. In the early mornings, when the Arizona air is still brisk, he takes a cold dip in his pool to shock his immune system into better function, and at some point or another he lies face-up on an electromagnetic mat that whirs silently against his body and opens up the veins, and engages in a breathing regime that, he says, balances the hormones.

These are typical life-extension strategies, though most people supplement regimens with their own ideas. Some fast. Others arrange expensive stem cell replacement therapies. To maintain a supple mind, the gerontologist Marios Kyriazis, who is in his 60s and heads the British Longevity Society, reads the newspaper upside down, and whenever that becomes too easy, he reads the newspaper upside down and reflected in a mirror. Think of it as an alternative to Sudoko.

What good is all of this? The current life-extensionist strategy is twofold. First, achieve a wellness foundation, Strole says. Second, stay alive until the coming gerontological breakthrough. All that is required is to live long enough for the next innovation, and presuming you do, You can buy another 20 years. Twenty years here, 20 years there, it all adds up, and suddenly youre 300. This is a common view. Last year the British billionaire Jim Mellon, who has written a book on longevity, titled Juvenescence, said: If you can stay alive for another 10 to 20 years, if you arent yet over 75 and if you remain in reasonable health for your age, you have an excellent chance of living to more than 110. To most, 110 seems a modest target. Why not forever? Its not some big quantum leap, Strole says, by way of explanation. He invokes the analogy of a ladder: step by step by step to unlimited life. In 2009 the American futurist Ray Kurzweil, another supplement enthusiast, coined a similar metaphor, referring instead to bridges to immortality.

Where to begin with the almighty question: why would anyone think this a good idea? Strole is openly afraid of death (who isnt? He argues), though he seems more motivated by a kind of curiosity. We live our lives knowing they will one day end. Imagine what we might accomplish if they didnt. (It is not clear exactly what Strole might actually want to accomplish: self-actualisation? World peace? That tricky jigsaw?) The American entrepreneur Dave Asprey, who is 46 but hopes to live beyond 180, and who takes 150 supplements a day, told me: I cant imagine running out of exciting new problems to solve!

This motivation is common the burning desire to help and it can be seen as morally virtuous or horribly presumptuous, depending on your opinion on the altruistic potential of a bunch of disproportionately wealthy, middle-aged men. (Is it possible the future will become a refuge for the rich, who experience life as a sequence of exquisite events and who might not understand the concept of entropy as relief or escape?) Few life extensionists openly admit to hedonistic impulses. You can only smoke so many Cuban cigars, Asprey says, before youre like, Ive got to buckle down. Though when I asked the British gerontologist Aubrey de Grey why indefinite life appeals, he replied, half-joking: My hot tub.

De Grey, a serious scientist, considers life extension a health issue, which is perhaps the fields most convincing argument. Gerontologists are not hoping to end death, he says. Instead, Were interested in people not getting sick when they get old. No matter how much society rails against the concept of immortality, nobody really wants to suffer through Alzheimers, or suddenly fall foul of cardiovascular disease. Gerontology is the act of developing treatments for age-related diseases, de Grey argues of reducing the causes of death, not death itself. The benefits of living longer are not the point, he says. The benefits are not having Alzheimers disease. For de Grey, indefinite life is a by-product, not a goal.

Are we anywhere near to a breakthrough? So far, research has produced modest yields. Gerontologists speak prophetically of potential, but most warn a significant human development remains somewhere far off in the distance almost in sight but not quite. Richard Hodes, the director of the National Institute of Aging, a US government agency, told me that, though research in animals has led to dramatic increases in lifespan, some of them multi-fold, There has been far less quantitative effect as those models have moved towards mammalian species. The biologist Laura Deming, who in 2011 established the Longevity Fund, a venture capital firm that supports high-potential longevity companies, told me that startups continue to successfully root out biological markers of ageing inefficient cells, mitochondrial decline but that, in humans, We really dont know right now what will work and what wont.

Much of gerontology focuses on identifying types of damage that accumulate with age and developing ways to halt or reverse that accumulation. It has been discovered, for example, that as we grow older, certain cells become ineffective but nevertheless stick around, getting in the way like comatose guests at the end of a house party. Removing those cells have helped mice have longer, healthier lifespans (this is called senescence.) Similar forms of genetic engineering have been successful in other animal models. But to reach the mainstream, gerontologists must convince government agencies to support human adoption, a complicated and long-winded task, given the general view that death is a normal human process. Why play God?

In any case, it is likely that one single longevity strategy alone wont help us much. Life extensionists enjoy a metaphor: humans are complicated machines, they say, like cars, but mushy. And what happens to a machine if you dont look after it? It rusts. It splutters and spurts, until it reaches its inevitable conclusion. De Grey considers ageing a multifaceted problem. Humans incur many different types of damage. We dont just rust. We scratch. We dent. Rubbish accumulates in our footwells and grime develops in our engines. We require multiple strategies of repair constant fine-tuning. Whats the point in removing those senescent cells if that molecular junk continues to build up?

De Grey shares Stroles belief that innovations are coming. But, unlike Strole, he considers current strategies almost pointless. He does not take hundreds of supplements. He does not pay for stem-cell transfusions. I want to wait and see, he says. At 56, he is content to sit tight for treatments that have become progressively more effective so I dont have to use clunky, first-generation therapies that may have side-effects.

This does not seem to bother Strole, nor others in the community. Time is running out! Bring on the treatments! At RAADfest, the Coalitions annual conference the Woodstock of radical life extension visitors are invited to root through the latest in anti-ageing products, of which there are many. Try DHEA PRO-25, an anti-ageing hormone. Or NAD+PRO, advertised to boost physical and mental energy. Or Piracetam, from the family of smart drugs, or nootropics, which claim to enhance brain function. Strole named the area: The marketplace of your future. It is popular among RAADfest guests for the power of its promise: the opportunity to realise the hoped-for self. This is Wellness 2.0 beyond the cosmetic. We have been anti-ageing our skin for years. Why not our insides, too?

Jim Mellon is reported to have described the longevity market as a fountain of cash, and has urged friends to invest. Business is already lucrative, but it is a market that appears to take little notice of efficacy. The majority of anti-ageing products remain unregulated patent pending, in the vernacular and more than a few appear utterly useless. Earlier this year, the US government released a statement condemning the anti-ageing fad of transfusing young blood into older bodies, a practice researchers have proved effective in mice but which, the FDA said, should not be assumed to be safe or effective in humans. (The treatments cost thousands of dollars, and led to concern that Patients are being preyed upon by unscrupulous actors.)

A decade ago, the American Association of Medicine publicly condemned the sale of anti-ageing hormones, an industry that was reported to be worth $50bn. Despite the widespread promotion of hormones as anti-ageing agents by for-profit websites, the association said, the scientific evidence to support these claims is lacking.

The oldest person to have lived, Jeanne Calment, reached 122, though she was perhaps not the greatest example of good health: she smoked until she was 117. The most successful life-extension methods we know of seem to be those we have known all along: eat well, sleep well, exercise, reduce stress and rely on modern medicine, which has prolonged average lifespans significantly over the past 160 years.

Strole does that and more. So far its working, he says. He is 6ft 4 and 13st the perfect weight with a slick of glossy grey hair. Perhaps his regimen is effective. Or, perhaps, like Calment, he has won a kind of genetic lottery, his healthy hair predisposed. It is difficult to say exactly, but, as of this moment, he will die. What happens if a breakthrough doesnt arrive in his lifetime? Well, then were in a little bit of hot water, he says. But its better to go for it than to not go for it. Its better than just settling in. Dont go quietly into the night.

The rest is here:
How to live forever: meet the extreme life-extensionists

Life Extension Review Summary

Life Extension sells reasonably priced supplements for healthy living, including supplements, creams, and more. Learn more in our Life Extension review!

Fiyin Ebemidayo, B.S.

Summary

Many customer reviews indicate that the supplements work well and are a high quality for the relatively low price. However, some of the supplements sold have dubious scientific claims and a minority of customers note that they did not feel well after taking the products.

Feature image: https://www.cheapsnowgear.com/collections/snow-backpack-for-ski

This review is written with the intent to be as unbiased as possible. However, it represents the opinion of an individual reviewer and is therefore subjective. Furthermore, at Nebula Genomics we seek to educate the public about the benefits of Whole Genome Sequencing. Information about our Whole Genome Sequencing DNA test is therefore incorporated into the review.

April 19, 2022

Cons

Life Extension was established in the 1980s. It focuses on nutritional science with the goal to provide customers with supplements for a healthier life. The company has historically been on the forefront of nutritional improvements, including the introduction of a new standard of protocols for blood screening and its industry-first recommendation of low-dose aspirin for heart disease.

Life Extensions mission is to help people lead healthier lives by consuming nutritional products. The FDA cannot approve their products, and they are not allowed to make claims concerning the use of their products. If interested, you can call them to request a certificate of analysis.

The company employs its own clinical researchers to develop its products and recommendations. Its team of industry-leading pharmacists, scientists, and physicians are committed to producing the highest quality supplements. To date, the company has put more than $180 million into research towards improving its products.

As a testament to the founders science journalism background, although Life Extension provides lengthy reports on each product, they use minimal science jargon and can be understood by nonprofessionals. Besides health supplements, Life Extension also offers laboratory tests through its partner, LabCorp. However, these tests are only available in the continental US, excluding Maryland.

Life Extension offers a range of vitamins and supplements for diet, personal care, and even pet care. They also provide a variety of lab tests, including blood and saliva tests and magazines, and published books on disease prevention, treatment, and the health benefits of vitamins and minerals.

Vitamins and Supplements

These form the bulk of products available from Life Extension. Customers can shop by type or health goal. The ordering page clearly notes how many capsules are in each order and how many days each bottle supplies.

Supplements and vitamins are available under multiple categories, with about five to fifteen products under each category. Each page has a short quiz to receive personalized recommendations based on your health condition and goal. The supplements come in bottles as either soft gels or vegetarian capsules. You can order single bottles or four bottles in a multipack bundle that is slightly discounted.

The categories under type are as follows. Note that the costs reflect original prices and do not take into account sales.

These products are organized under health goals such as brain health and energy management. Other categories include:

Diet and Lifestyle

Besides the regular vitamins and supplements on offer, Life Extension sells some products classified as supplements for staying fit. These supplements are meant to help you boost the effectiveness of your workout and exercise. They include supplements for all needs, including carbs, proteins, and calories. They also have products that can help with weight loss or gain.

Categories available under the diet and lifestyle section are as follows:

Skin and Personal Care

Life Extension offers a range of skincare and personal grooming products. These products contain various nutrients needed to keep your skin healthy and ageless, including hyaluronic acid. Life Extensions skincare products include cleansers, exfoliators, moisturizers, anti-aging, and skin tightening serums. They offer products for all skin types, dry, oily, and combination.

Like with the supplements, you can take a quiz to receive product recommendations.

Pet Care

Life Extension offers products not just for you but also for your pets. These supplements provide your cat or dog with the proper nutrients for their growth.

Life Extension offers lab tests through its partnership with LabCorp. Tests on offer include blood, breath, saliva, urinary and fecal tests. It should, however, be noted that these tests are only available in the continental United States.

Taking a test through Life Extension does not require visiting a doctor for a lab order as an order is provided for you by a licensed doctor in your state. You can carry out the blood test yourself in your house if it is only a finger prick test, but you will have to visit a LabCorp laboratory if more blood is needed to be collected. You can find LabCorp laboratories nationwide. To get priority, you can make an appointment online before visiting the lab.

Once you get your test results, you can decide to talk to one of Life Extensions wellness specialists for a review of the test results. It should be noted that Life Extension does not offer diagnosis or treatment and that the test results are informational only. We, however, recommend that you still discuss the results with your physician for a broader outlook on the state of your health.

Lab test categories include blood clotting/circulation, blood sugar, bone, cardiovascular, cholesterol, digestion, healthy weight, hormones, immune system, inflammation management, kidney/urinary, liver, mens testing, neurological, nutrition, thyroid/adrenal, and womens testing.

Life Extensions supplements are not exactly expensive, with a bottle costing between about $10 and $30. However, you should note that different supplements will have a different number of capsules in each bottle. Additionally, since supplements are designed to be taken continuously, customers will have to manage the cost regularly.

The same goes for the other nutrition and care products.

In most cases, customers can save 11% by ordering more than one bottle at a time. There is the option of signing up for auto shipping when you have products you would like to order periodically. This option allows you to receive the products automatically monthly with the added perk of free shipping and an 11% discount. You also do not have to worry about overpaying when there is a price reduction, as the amount charged is automatically updated each time.

On the other hand, the lab tests range from as low as $20 but can cost over $800 for the more complex tests.

Life Extension offers a premium membership subscription called Premier Rewards. It costs $50 annually and gets you unlimited free shipping via standard shipping and discounts on international orders. In addition, you get a 4% cashback on every order, a free subscription to Life Extensions monthly magazine, and surprise gifts during your birth month and at random times.

Life Extensions privacy policy page does not indicate any unique protocols that protect user information. Your test results may be used for research but are anonymized, so they cannot be traced back to you. In addition, user information is shared with partners, including advertisers, to serve personalized ads to you.

The supplement company continues to perform research and release new products. In 2022, new supplements include Brain Fog Relief and Waistline Control.

The company sells many of its supplements on Amazon. Here, they receive top rated rankings between 4 and 4.5 out of 5 stars. The products have been reviewed hundreds of times and some of the more popular products even have close to 7,000 ratings.

As noted in the reviews for the Two-per-Day Multivitamin, many customers felt the company has quality products and that they have seen good results, especially as they cost less than competitors. Some customers even highly recommend it, noting that they have taken them for years.

However, some reviewers indicate that the vitamin does not absorb well and they have side effects such as feeling sick after taking them. With supplements, its important to note that not every supplement works for every person and customers should consult with their doctor before adding supplements to their diet.

Before considering supplements, you may want to know more about your genetic predispositions to conditions these supplements support. Nebula Genomics offers accurate DNA testing at a reasonable price. These tests indicate genetic predispositions to characteristics and health issues, among other things.

Results on ancestry, health, food, and exercise are produced with 30x Whole Genome Sequencing, which decodes 100% of the DNA. It also gives you complete control over how your test results are handled and raw data to further explore your DNA data. This knowledge may help you and your doctor decide if certain supplements are right for you.

You also receive exclusive access to genetic information to assist your genealogical study. Regular updates and reports from Nebula Genomics bring you up to date on the newest advances in genetic science, ensuring you have continued access to the latest research.

Did you like our Life Extension review? You can read more reviews on our blog and check out our complete guide to the best DNA test kit and other home tests.

You may also be interested in these other supplement companies:

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Life Extension review - 7 facts you should know [APRIL 2022]

Last Updated: Feb 7, 2022

Life Extension has always been on the cutting edge of science, breaking through boundaries of the expected to unveil longer and healthier lives for others. Many of the supplements we see on the market today were formulated by Life Extensions scientific team. Finding new pieces of the puzzle for human health becomes even more essential when most Americans have a vitamin deficiency.

But cutting edge doesnt always mean best for you. We tested Life Extension to see exactly what it is and isnt good for, so you can decide if Life Extension is right for your vitamin and supplement needs.

Editor's Summary

Life Extension makes big promises about the purity and potency of their supplements. A reliable third party generally confirms this high quality, but it may not be universally true. And the flipside of their quality control is reduced selection and somewhat higher cost.

Our Top Picks

Life Extension is known for developing high-quality, pure, and potent nutritional supplements.

Life Extension also offers competitively priced lab testing along with their industry leading vitamins, supplements, hormones, and herbs

Super Ubiquinol CoQ10

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NAD+ Cell Regenerator

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Super Omega-3 EPA/DHA

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How we evaluated Life Extension

In order to give you a complete picture of Life Extensions products and experiences, we considered fundamental factors including your user experience and the quality and variety of products they offer.

8.0 / 10

Life Extension only stocks their own brand of supplements, which is a way to produce consistent quality but also results in a much smaller catalog than their competitors have. However, as the Life Extension Foundation develops new and specific formulas, they carry specialized and hyper-specific supplements and blends that others dont.

7.9 / 10

Life Extension brags about the rigorous testing and quality assurance checks that all of their products go through. Their supplements contain no food coloring or unnecessary additives, and ConsumerLab.com gives them high marks in several categories, but our own testing raised some questions. Based on their rocky history with the FDA, the effectiveness of these supplements may vary more than Life Extension lets on.

8.0 / 10

Overall, Life Extensions products are middle-of-the-road in cost but tend toward the expensive side. All of their vitamins are similarly priced no matter how many pills are in each bottle, so keep an eye on the total pill count before you decide. Their LabCorp lab tests can get wildly expensive depending on what youre trying to find. However, with over 200 different tests to order, you can still find a relatively inexpensive look at your biomarkers. Their rewards program is hefty but costs quite a bit upfront.

8.8 / 10

The catalog is laid out clearly and makes it easy to find what you need with quizzes along the way. It is also relatively easy to get lost in their information pages: you need to jump through hoops to find full detail on their history and services.

9.2 / 10

With multiple methods of communication and specific lines for getting in touch with wellness specialists, Life Extension has made it easy to get exactly the help you need. They hold long hours, so even night owls on the west coast can get assistance. All customer service representatives we spoke with were kind and knowledgeable and those who didnt know an answer for us knew how to get us in touch with someone who did.

Why you can trust our review

Over the past two decades, Innerbody Research has helped tens of millions of readers like you make more informed decisions to live healthier lives. We extensively test each health service we review.

Our team has spent over 147 hours testing and researching Life Extension and its close competitors in order to give you an unbiased exploration of your health supplement options, free of marketing jargon or gimmicks. Through a thorough and deliberate approach to every product we encounter, we evaluate services based on adherence to quality, the latest medical evidence and health standards, and a simple question: would we buy the product or service ourselves if it werent part of our job, and would we recommend it to family and friends?

Additionally, this review of Life Extension, like all health-related content on this website, was thoroughly vetted by one or more members of our Medical Review Board for accuracy.

Originally founded as the Florida Cryonics Association in 1977 by a science journalist and a mortician-turned-businessman, Life Extension (renamed in 1980) began as an organization dedicated to extending the human lifespan. However, in more recent years, the organization has split into two halves:

Throughout this article, well refer to the Life Extension Buyers Club as Life Extension, as that is the part of the organization open for us as consumers.

Life Extension boasts a lot of firsts in product development, such as introducing:

They also have studied many new applications of known supplements, including:

Clearly, with such a strong eye for product development, Life Extension offers tons of supplements. They hold all of their products to a high standard, testing and retesting multiple times. They are transparent about their scientific processes and health and safety protocols, to the point that you can call their customer service line to get information on the Certificate of Analysis for any product you want. While their ingredients are sourced globally, almost all of their products are manufactured in the United States.

They also are a preferred brand of the third-party testing organization ConsumerLab.com. ConsumerLab.com has rated Life Extension number one with their top-rated award in three separate categories (omega-3 EPA products, internet catalog, and multivitamins) for five, six, and eight years respectively.

Despite having excellent ratings from third-party testers, Life Extension has a relatively antagonistic relationship and troubled past with the FDA. There have been 56 criminal charges levied against the founders, including distributing unapproved drugs after a warehouse raid from the FDA, but all charges were dropped by 1996. That said, Life Extension was issued a warning in 2017 for claiming that Life Extension products could cure diseases such as breast cancer.

Because the FDA doesnt regulate supplements, it is illegal for companies like Life Extension to claim that supplements will treat, diagnose, prevent, or cure diseases. Life Extension can be grandiose at times in their product descriptions, so take their word with a grain of salt.

Who could benefit from using Life Extension?

Anyone currently taking a supplement or looking for a new brand with excellent customer service and strong science may find that Life Extension fills their supplement needs. With their heavily scientific focus, those who are otherwise skeptical of supplements (based on ingredients or lack of mandatory testing) could also find their worries soothed by Life Extensions up-front policies and detail-heavy pages. Its easy to go down long, winding roads reading through Life Extensions various pages.

Despite being so scientific, Life Extension takes the time to break down their science thoroughly and with minimal jargon. Its clear that this organization was founded in part by a science journalist.

As with all supplements, if youre taking any medications or have any medical conditions, consult with your doctor before beginning a new supplement. There are lots of interactions between supplements and medications, some of which can be fatal. Vitamin K can reduce the effectiveness of blood thinners, for example, and kava can cause liver damage. Supplements are not substitutes for conventional medications, as they cannot cure, diagnose, prevent, or otherwise treat diseases.

Lab tests are only available in the continental United States (except for Maryland) and Anchorage, Alaska. If you live in New York, New Jersey, Rhode Island, or Massachusetts, you will have to go through your preferred medical providers blood-testing lab rather than LabCorp.

Life Extensions catalog

A vast majority of Life Extensions products are supplements. There isnt an option to peruse all of their vitamins and supplements at once, but there are several smaller ways you can break down their catalog. You can search by type of product, which includes:

Shop Supplements

You can also sort by health goal, including:

There is a lot of overlap between categories. Some supplements can be found in multiple categories with different purposes, but for the most part, each category has five to fifteen distinct supplements specific to the aim of the category. Every page includes a short quiz for you to take, which judges your current health background and health goals and then recommends products for you.

A vast majority of these are softgels or vegetarian capsules, meaning they are specifically designed to break down quickly in the body for apt absorption. The sizes and doses found in each bottle depend on the supplement itself. Every supplement is sold in counts of 30, up to 300 pills per bottle. A few supplements offer multiple doses or sizes, but most only come in one dose and size.

Insider Tip: Based on our testing, we would recommend opting for supplements that dont arrive in tablet form. Tablets generally make it harder for your body to absorb the nutrients, and Life Extensions tablets did not disintegrate in our lab tests nearly as thoroughly or quickly as competitors tablets. Sticking with softgels or capsules is more reliable.

You can buy bottles either individually or in a multipack bundle with four bottles at a slightly discounted price.

Aside from supplemental vitamins and minerals, Life Extension offers a limited catalog of edible products. These are specifically from the Life Extension brand and focus much more on potential health benefits than other supplement companies that also sell diet products. These include:

If youre looking for supplements to add to your weight loss or athletic regimen, Life Extension also has nine different diet and weight loss supplements. For the most part, these are supplements that promote satiety, decrease appetite, and encourage the breakdown of stored fat with mostly scientifically proven ingredients. There are no products with popular but unproven ingredients.

Shop Supplements

Life Extension also offers a handful of products for skin, nails, hair, and oral care. These include supplements like collagen and biotin and probiotic lozenges for both throat health and overall oral health.

Surprisingly, Life Extension has a robust catalog of skincare products akin to something youd see in a mainstream skincare brand. They offer:

Many of these products are aimed at those who are on the older side of things. Given their history and original goals of eradicating aging and preventing death, this makes sense: protect your skin as well as your insides from the sands of time. These products have common, proven ingredients to help your skin flourish, such as hyaluronic acid and vitamin C.

If youre not sure what your skin needs, Life Extension also offers a quiz to dive deeper into your current skincare routine (if you have one) and your overall skin needs. It recommends products for you based on your results so you can dive into your own testing experience.

Not sure if Fido or Fluffys food is giving them the right nutrients? Life Extension has your furry friends back, too, with a mix of advanced multi-nutrient formulas for both dogs and cats. Both dog mix and cat mix are sold in 100-gram bottles for easy addition over the top of your pets normal food. They contain dozens of vitamins, minerals, amino acids, fatty acids, and probiotics not common in pet food but essential to their overall health. In other words, they help provide things your pet might otherwise be missing.

These pet care supplements are well-balanced mixes for adult pets who are average-sized. Life Extension recommends their serving sizes for six- to nine-pound cats and approximately 30-pound dogs, so scale accordingly if your pet is larger or smaller than that.

If youre going to optimize your health, it helps to know where youre starting. Life Extension offers the opportunity to order virtually any lab test that the popular brand LabCorp offers. Thats 230 tests in every form:

You can do blood tests at home if they are finger-prick tests, but larger blood tests must be done in any of LabCorps blood labs. Most of these labs are walk-in, but you can make an appointment for yourself on LabCorps website to save yourself some time as people with appointments get prioritized. With over 2,000 locations around the United States, youll be able to find a location near you.

Because youre ordering these tests through Life Extension, you cannot pay with insurance. Costs can get prohibitively expensive, but if you dont need to test your allergies by season or a complete blood youth panel (which costs over $800), you can find tests for single vitamins or biomarkers for as low as $20.

After you get your test results back through Life Extension, they recommend you call their Wellness Specialist line to review your results and answer any questions. However, if you have a primary medical provider, we recommend you let them know of your results so that they have a complete picture of your medical health.

Life Extension offers a monthly magazine that you can subscribe to through their site. This magazine is designed to keep you up to date like a blog, giving information about organic food and fitness alongside their standard science-heavy information. They list scientific study results relevant to their services from the past month and innovative treatment protocols and medical findings. Each magazine is about 100 pages long and is accessible both in hard copy and PDF.

If its your first time checking out the LE Magazine, you can get the latest issue for free without a subscription. You can either order this to your home as a physical copy or download it as a PDF. As such, there is never any cost to read the magazine. Just be sure to save it every month so you can stay up to date.

Disease Prevention and Treatment

Life Extension very literally wrote the book on using vitamins and supplements to improve your health. First launched in 1997, Disease Prevention and Treatment is now in its sixth edition and is offered online for sale. It is one of the most comprehensive textbooks available for disease treatment and management. A hard copy of the most recent edition costs $59.95 through Life Extensions site but can be found for much less elsewhere.

This textbook is immense, with over 1,600 pages on uncommon strategies and innovative approaches to improving health and disease outcomes. The book claims that procedures using their supplements can cure diseases such as cancer, heart disease, arthritis, and neurological disorders, implying that this information is hidden from the mainstream. They back up many of their 131 treatment protocols with scientific studies and aim to have the most comprehensive and recent guide to self-protection.

However, Disease Prevention and Treatment has also run into some problems with the FDA. In their 2017 letter to Life Extension, the FDA mentions that the book suggests brain tumors can be cured with specific Life Extension diet and nutritional supplements (alongside the medical oncology standard of care). This assumption of curability seems to be a trend among care suggestions in the book.

Keep in mind that all claims of treating, curing, mitigating, or preventing disease with supplements cannot be verified because we dont yet have the verifiable scientific knowledge to know if its true, despite the scientific studies they leverage. If you have concerns about specific medical issues or symptoms you are experiencing, talk first with your preferred medical provider. Life Extensions processes may work for you but clear it first to ensure the best possible outcome for your health.

Health and Wellness Market

Life Extension has one retail location in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Their Health and Wellness Market has several components:

Events at the lecture hall happen occasionally but never without lots of advertising and the potential of joining clinical research studies at the market.

The grocery store carries other brands of supplements and health foods beyond Life Extension, including Jarrow, Garden of Life, Nutiva, and Bobs Red Mill. If youd like to order a blood test through LabCorp, you can have it done there. While you might not get your results the same day, they have Wellness Specialists on location. You can bring any of your Life Extension results in, and theyll gladly sit down with you to help interpret your results.

Currently, the Health and Wellness Market is available by appointment over the phone only. It is open:

The LabCorp lab has more limited hours, closing at 2:00 PM on weekdays and 1:30 PM on Saturdays, and is closed on Sundays.

Science of Life Extensions supplements

Breaking down Life Extensions scientific merit gets complicated fast. They appear extremely scientific and accurate from the outside, with extensive testing and high ratings from third parties. After all, the other half of Life Extension is the Life Extension Foundation, a long-standing research and testing organization.

There are frequent mentions of scientific studies on product pages without ever linking or citing them, but they also claim that they can predict or unlock things years in advance of mainstream sciences understanding. Some of this is legitimate, and some of it stretches the boundaries of truth a bit.

What this means for their products is that most have an inherently experimental edge. Life Extension takes pride in their ability to be groundbreaking, but they dont always acknowledge that experimental doesnt mean better, but no one wants you to know. Experimental simply means something new, whether its a known ingredient in a new application or a new formula altogether.

Thankfully, Life Extension makes their science clear. Virtually every page on the site has scientific information woven throughout, from product pages to blogs. A vast majority of their known-ingredient supplements are dosed properly based on daily intake recommendations, unlike some large supplement retailers.

Life Extension has repeatedly gotten in trouble for claiming that their products can cure or treat diseases, and we found some of this language still lingering on the site. They also offer headlines like 4 Reasons Why Everyone Should Take Our Amino Acids, which is troublesome simply because supplements are a deeply personal health matter. Not every vitamin or supplement will work for every person, despite what their advertising might say.

Life Extension also offers a blog for science news and health news. The Health News blog is small but posts new articles frequently. These articles go into some detail on anti-aging, nutrition, and vitamins. Each piece is written by experts and scientifically reviewed by medical professionals, much like our own. A typical article goes through a recent scientific study, breaking it down into easy-to-understand language and then explaining how that might apply to you and how you could apply those findings to your life.

For example, one article discusses a study on how better diet quality correlates to decelerated biological aging, specifically a DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet that discourages the intake of processed foods. Though it has a punchy title, the article itself is clearly written and includes a list of their references for all to see. This transparency of outside research isnt something you see throughout most of the site, so its a handy look into Life Extensions processes.

There are also consumer alerts, which provide links to short articles on topics that may impact your rights to purchase substances that Life Extension sells. However, the most recent consumer alerts were in October 2019, with only seven articles in the current section, which dates back to 2015.

The navigation for their scientific research page is not particularly clear. They have multiple landing pages that look different, but all link to the same thing; it appears as though theres a newsletter you can subscribe to, but clicking the link just takes you back to the blog.

Do Life Extensions tablets disintegrate?

For any pill or supplement to work, it needs to both disintegrate (crumble into small pieces) and dissolve (combine with liquid) after its been taken. The rate of disintegration and dissolution depends on the supplement, how soluble it is, the ingredients, and hundreds of other factors. However, the fact still stands: your body cant use a supplement if it isnt absorbed into the bloodstream before being excreted. Tablets, or hard pills, are notorious for not disintegrating or dissolving correctly, as other forms have specific mechanisms built in to help.

There is no formal federal testing agency for verifying whether or not supplements actually work. Instead, we took matters into our own hands and created an artificial stomach-like environment to test some of Life Extensions most popular tablet supplements for proper disintegration. This allows our testing team to check Life Extensions disintegration quality.

Our testers received their boxes of product in Life Extension branded cardboard packaging with inspirational quotes on the inside folds. The bottles themselves were packed tightly and efficiently with Life Extension branded tissue paper and appeared to have been packed with care.

None of the supplements we tested fully disintegrated over the course of our experiment. Some mostly disintegrated but left a full-length sliver of material by the end; some barely began flaking when the experiment was over. Considering Life Extension promotes consistent, high-quality testing, we were truly surprised by these results. These findings mean that there is a chance that these supplements may not be adequately absorbed by your body when you take them. Based on our testing, we would recommend opting for supplements that dont arrive in tablet form.

Life Extension is relatively middle-of-the-road when it comes to how much youll have to pay for their products. While not horribly expensive, they arent necessarily cheap either. A majority of their supplements cost between $10 and $30 for a single bottle, though they can cost as much as $75 or as little as $4. Of course, these bottles also have anywhere between 30 and 300 capsules, so in some cases, you can get a lot more product for a lot less money.

Their other major product LabCorp blood, saliva, breath, urine, and fecal tests is considerably more expensive across the board. These can cost between $20 and over $800, depending on the size of the panel and what you are hoping to have tested. While there arent any observable trends between the testing methods, tests for single vitamins or biomarkers cost around $47. Panel tests, or those which look at more than one element of your health, sit around $150. The more complex the test, the more it will cost.

If you know youll be purchasing the same product from them repeatedly, it might be worth it to sign up for an autoship subscription. Autoship will get your product shipped to you in monthly intervals without having to reorder it, with the bonus of free shipping. They will always update your order to automatically pay the lowest price possible and have the most recent formulations.

If you know youll be shopping from Life Extension regularly, they offer a paid rewards program called Premier Rewards. After paying an annual $49.95 subscription fee, youll unlock:

Youll also receive a one-time $50 credit to your account to offset the first years subscription fee. Every purchase you make will add LE Dollars to your account, where every dollar spent is a dollar added. You can then redeem these LE Dollars to use on other Life Extension products.

Premier Rewards are also available internationally for a slightly higher $59.95. However, not every perk is available in every country, so make sure that youll be able to get what you want before registering.

If you arent interested in the Premier Rewards program, every purchase you make with an account will still earn 2% of the orders cost in LE Dollars with every purchase.

Life Extension offers two platforms to contact customer support: phone and in-browser chat.

Originally posted here:
Life Extension Reviews | Everything You Need To Know - Innerbody

Shop around to find a promo code of your choice and copy it.

Visit the website and choose the desired products.

Go to the cart page and locate the Discount code field under your order summary.

Paste the promo code youve copied, and enjoy the discount.

Make sure you want to redeem a deal thats valid

Correct the formatting of the code you pasted if necessary

Check if the discount comes with minimum order amount requirements and meet them if you havent already

Sometimes coupons apply for specific items, so ensure youve added them to your order

If you cant find any available Life Extension discount codes, theres a chance that expired ones can do the trick. Its not always possible, but sometimes expired coupons can still be redeemed. Another option is to shop in their sale section.

Currently, its possible to redeem only one Life Extension coupon per order. In other words, theres no combining coupons policy.

At present, they dont have a physical store. So, you cant redeem Life Extension online coupons.

There are endless saving opportunities on Black Friday and Cyber Monday. However, after thorough research, we couldnt find available offers from Life Extension during these events.

Fortunately, you can avail yourself of great discounts when shopping at Life Extension during public holidays. Previous offers have been launched on Labor Day, the 4th of July, and Memorial Day. Their last promotions have included between $10 and 40$ savings on purchases of over $75 and $250, respectively, on Labor Day. This years Independence Day sale came with up to $45 off orders of over $250. The latest Life Extension Memorial Day sale offered $10 off $100+, $25 off purchases $200+, and $45 off orders $300+.

Shopping at Life Extension on seasonal events comes with plenty of deep discounts. Fathers and Mothers Day come with offers of between 40% and 60% off, respectively. Also, Life Extension launches annual clearance sales, available in the Summer. The beginning of the year comes with a Flash sale at Life Extension. Valid one day only, you can enjoy $50 off orders of over $350. There is also a Christmas sale. Life Extensions latest Christmas event included between $10 and $65 saving options on orders of over $100 or $450. Stay tuned for other promos the day after Christmas. Additionally, the retailer launches a Top picks sale several times a year. You can find their top picks at up to 60% off and get free shipping.

Theres a permanent sale section on the Life Extension website. There, you can find vitamins and supplements at between 25% and 70% off their regular price.

Theres no permanent free shipping available at Life Extension. That said, they often launch promotions where you can get free shipping. You can also redeem coupons to get your products without having to pay shipping fees. Otherwise, shipping charges start from $5.50.

The Life Extension rewards program, called Life Extension Premier, comes with intriguing perks. It costs only $49.95 a year, but you receive an immediate credit of $50 upon enrolling. You also get free unlimited shipping and 4% back on purchases, expressed in LE Dollars. They can be redeemed on your next order. There are other premium perks, including gifts, premium content, prompt notifications on upcoming sales, and rewards for participating in surveys.

At present, there is no available Life Extension app discount. That is due to the fact that they have not launched an app yet.

Up to now, Life Extension hasnt adopted a military discount policy. You can always pay a visit to their websites Terms of Use page for updates.

Students cant avail of special discounts at Life Extension. You can sign up for

our newsletter, and well inform you if that changes.

Currently, there are no sign-up offers available in the Life Extension newsletter. Still, signing up will get you notified promptly about different promotions and health and nutrition news.

Sometimes, Life Extension launches first-order promo codes. Customers can get $5 to $10 off on their first order, plus free shipping.

Theres a refer-a-friend policy available at Life Extension. You can receive $10 LE Dollars for every friend you successfully refer.

Under the Life Extension return policy, shoppers can return products they are dissatisfied with within 12 months of the purchase date. You can receive a replacement or refund. Contact their customer service for details.

Customers can make payments at Life Extension using different payment options. They accept the following credit cards: Visa, American Express, and Mastercard. You can also pay via PayPal, Klarna, or bank transfer.

See original here:
$40 Off Life Extension Coupon January 2023 - CNET Coupons

What are vitamins?

Vitamins are essential nutrients our bodies need for a wide array of health functions. If you eat plenty of fruits and vegetables, youre on the right path to getting the vitamins you need for optimal healththats because plant-based foods tend to be great natural sources of vitamins. For example, spinach is a great way to get in vitamin A, and many whole grains are good sources of B vitamins such as folate. And lets not forget oranges and other citrus fruits, which are a rich in vitamin C. Food isnt the only way to get vitamins, however; most famously, vitamin D is nicknamed the sunshine vitamin because you get it from sun exposure.

But even if you spend a lot of time outdoors and follow the most health-conscious of diets, you likely will need to take vitamins as supplements to achieve optimum wellness. Vitamin brands offer these nutrients as capsules, tablets, fat-soluble softgels, powders, and gummies.

People often mistakenly call minerals vitamins, because both are essential to our health. Popular minerals to take in supplement form include bone strength must-have calcium, as well as iron, zinc, magnesium and selenium. Foods are a good natural source of these minerals, but just as its difficult to get enough vitamins from our diet. We also often need to take a dietary supplement to get adequate levels of minerals.

The term supplements refers to vitamins and mineral supplements, as well as amino acids such as L-carnitine, antioxidants such as coenzyme CoQ10, and also herbals like echinacea. You may also find supplement formulas called multivitamins which contain both vitamins and other nutrients necessary for wellness.

Taking vitamins and supplements is a good insurance policy to fill in any dietary gaps. Even if your diet chock full of superfoods that are brimming with nutrition, its likely that youre missing out on some important nutrients. For example, unless you eat fatty fish regularly, you will need to supplement with omega-3 to get the heart and brain health benefits of fish oil. Beyond that, you can also supplement as part of your pursuit of a specific health goalwhether its vitamin C for immune support, collagen for healthy skin and joints, lutein and astaxanthin for eye health, sports supplements, or a specific health formula to support your healthy weight journey.

To avoid a deficiency, you should take a high-quality multivitamin that includes at a minimum vitamin B-complex (consisting of vitamin B12, folic acid, biotin and other B vitamins), vitamin C, vitamin D3, and vitamin E, as well as calcium, magnesium, and other minerals. Curcumin is a great option for heart health, brain function, comfortable joints and more; prebiotics and probiotics support optimal digestive health (and who doesnt want that?). If you follow a plant-based diet, you can obtain most of these vitamins and supplements from vegetarian capsules, including vegan vitamin D3.

Be a picky consumer when shopping for vitamins online! While youll find many natural food stores and online vitamin stores that offer a dizzying array of health products, ensure youre choosing a brand that takes a science-based approach to the formulation of vitamins and supplements. Only order health products that have been tested for efficacy and can provide a Certificate of Analysis verifying quality and safety. Ensure the supplements are being shipped from a climate-controlled facility as well, since spoiling can happen in extreme heat. A final word to the wise: always check the expiration date on your supplements before consuming!

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This article is for my (J.P.s) sister.

Shes always been the one in my family most vocal about her concerns with the pros and cons of immortality.

Particularly the cons.

And I think the potential problems of increased life expectancy that she identifies are concerns a lot of people share.

Because once you get past the question of if radical human life extension is even possible, the inevitable next question is, Should we do it?

In fact, there are a lot of ethical arguments against life extension (as my sister is wont to remind me).

Im sure youve heard, or even thought of, many of them yourself.

What if only the rich can afford it?

What about overpopulation and the environment?

Wont you just get bored?

Who would want to live to 150 if youre just old and decrepit and in a nursing home all that time?

In this post, were going to try and address all these longevity objections, and more (Immortal dictators! Religious concerns! Social Security!), but first we should talk about that last question (being old and decrepit for decades) briefly.

Many people, when they think about life extension, assume the process will simply extend the tail-end of our lives, adding more years on to that period when we are beset with frailty and age-related mental and physical decline.

Stuck in a wheelchair, youll have to play bingo for an extra fifty years while youre forced to stay alive through uncomfortable tubes up your nose or something.

And believe me, no one, myself included, wants that.

But what spanners and other people interested in human longevity want is not just extended lifespans, but extended healthspans.

As we said in our very first article on human life extension here:

Human life extension addresses both chronological and biological aging; it asks not just how can we live longer, but how long can we live well. Healthspan, or the years of our lives when were unencumbered by disease or disability, addresses just that. What if you could have the body you had at 25 well into your 80s or 100s or 120s? What more could you do with those extra rich years of life? Who could you become?

The technical term for this is compressing morbidity: shortening the decrepit, morbid years and extending the healthy ones. And, as we also discussed in our first article, theres plenty of scientific evidence to suggest that anti-aging interventions can do just this in both animals and in humans.

So what well be talking about throughout the rest of this article on the ethics of life extension is not extending the unhealthy years of our lives, but extending our healthy, active, vibrant years and why (quite a few, actually) people think that could still be a bad thing.

Because this is a (really) long post, feel free to jump to the section youre most interested in, rather than read through everything.

Does death make life meaningless?

Tolstoy and Nietzsche would argue that thats absolutely the caseand theyve gotten plenty of attention for it, especially in Western culture, because it runs contrary to an unspoken assumption that death itself is what gives life meaning. Christians look forward to heaven. Jews see death as a terrible but necessary part of Gods plan. Buddhists believe death leads only to rebirth. In so many philosophical traditions, death is essential for life itself to have meaning.

Some even go as far to claim that death is required for life to have meaning. Theythe likes of the late Holocaust survivor Viktor Frankl and philosopher Sir Bernard Williamspresent three major arguments against life extension:

Lets break them all down.

Religious fatalism is the belief that an individuals health is predetermined by a higher power; the individual can not and should not intervene. Religious fatalism isnt something relegated only to cults or extremists. Its significantly correlated with race, people with lower incomes, and people with lower levels of education. Religious fatalism is distinct from fatalism, in that it refers specifically to healthcare decisions. Many who believe in destiny or fate will also argue that they are predetermined to suffer from an illness or disease, and recovery will not hinge on medical interventionits up to the universe.

And, if fate does have a role in medical outcomes, intervening would be foolish. Why waste the money and resources on doing so if youre just going to die anyway? Using this logic, aging should be embraced as a natural part of life.

Following that line of thinking, the medical field should cease to exist. Forget cancer researchclose the childrens hospitals and ER rooms and eliminate the FDA. Life-sustaining drugs like insulin, Albuterol, and Levothyroxine should be banned along with seatbelts and helmets.

Of course, many who believe in religious fatalism dont necessarily want to be so prescriptive to the rest of society. They might see it as an important personal choice, but not something to put on others. Orand I find this common among my circlesits the elimination of age-related death altogether thats off-putting. Theyre completely comfortable with, say, finding a cure for Alzheimers, cancer, and diabetes, but when age itself is indicated as a major precursor to all these diseases, they shrug it off. Ageing is an essential part of life. Its not to be tampered with.

Part of the reason is because being old without being healthy is horrific. Think wheelchairs, struggling to open Jell-O cups, and slowly losing your senseseach one a tragic loss for a 15-year-old but an inevitability for someone over 90. But this goes to show that we just dont consider the elderly as human as those younger than them. Frailty is a tragedy for anyone, not just for those deemed young enough for it to be uncommon.

Thus, the indefinite extension of healthspan, or the years of our lives when were unencumbered by disease or disability, is really the ultimate goal of life extension. And many find that option far more palatable; if one practices yoga or avoids processed carbohydrates in an effort for a longer healthspan, the prospect of a lengthened lifespan becomes far more palatable.

And in the end, the ethics of life extension require that no one is forcing anyone else to live longer than they would like. Just like anyone can deny medical interventions, so too can they choose not to live longer than they believe they were destined to. That is, in my view, nothing but a personal choice.

If we were immortal, we could legitimately postpone every action forever. [] But in the face of death as absolute finis to our future and boundary to our possibilities, we are under the imperative of utilizing our lifetimes to the utmost, not letting the singular opportunities whose finite sum constitutes the whole of life pass by unused.

Frankl, in the quote above, argues that with all the time of eternity, nothing could get done. One could, theoretically, indefinitely put off confessing a love, writing a novel, or starting a company. Of course, discomfort should also be a part of the conversion; while one could choose to never eat because the process takes action, hunger is a tremendous motivator, even if one is nowhere near close to dying from starvation.

Some contemporary psychological studies support Frankl. For example, a 2007 article published in Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin found that those who encounter death over a long period are more likely to be intrinsically motivated (and actually write that novel theyve always wanted to). That said, the threat of death isnt necessarily a requirement for intrinsic motivation in general. Realistically, there is a range of reasons why people do thingsfor praise, for accomplishment, or to just do it,and very few of them have to do with the inevitability of death.

In fact, philosophers like Heidegger have argued that most people live their lives in denial of their death. One study on mortality salience (awareness of ones own death) found that research participants actively tried not to engage with their own mortalitya reaction that may be a biological response. It would be tough to argue death is the sole reason for any significant actions people take throughout their lives if theyre actively avoiding considering it.

Lets say that immortality has no effect on your motivationin fact, you have the curiosity of a 25-year-old and the body to match. Youve ticked off your bucket list. You live where you want, work where you want (if you want), and you do what you want. Life is splendid. And boring.

Desperately boring.

This could be one of the major cons of immortality, but Brooke Alan Trisel points out that not all of life is meaningful. He writes, most of our lives are neither meaningless nor meaningful, but lie somewhere between these two extremes.

I would amend his argument further to say that most moments of our individual lives are neither meaningless or meaningful, but lie somewhere in between. For example, celebrating your wedding day might be tremendously meaningful, but the hours spent visiting florists might not be.

Its true that old people experience boredom, and that that boredom can be detrimental to their health. The boredom that they experience, however, often has to do with perils of aging: loneliness, immobility, and declining faculties.

I doubt anyone would advocate that we euthanize everyone over 80 because they might suffer from boredom. Finding interest in new activities, engaging with curiosity, and experiencing excitement, joy, and contentment are all pillars of mental health. Boredom, itself, is a health issue, and not necessarily a reason to prevent life extension.

Weve all seen those dystopian sci-fi stories.

While the rich lead lives of unimaginable luxury in their space stations, enjoying near-immortality and all the sexbots they can afford, the poor toil in the spice mines below, dying early from Spice Lung or malfunctioning cheap cybernetic implants.

No one wants to live in that worldand not just because it would entail having to endure more of Matt Damons terrible acting.

And with rising concerns about wealth inequality, its entirely understandable that many people ask the question:

What if only the rich can afford life-extension treatments?

Because while global wealth inequality has actually been declining for the first time in two centuriesdue largely to the rapid economic growth afforded by technological innovation and the opening of markets, particularly in Asiasome measures of wealth inequality within countries have shown worrying rises.

So is it ethical to pursue life extension if its not accessible to everyone?

A 2016 study found that, The gap in life expectancy between the richest 1% and poorest 1% of individuals was 14.6 years for men and 10.1 years for women.

However, it may not be as bad as it seems.

A more recent study that took into account income mobility (instead of assuming people kept the same income their entire lives) found a gap of only 2.4 years for men with different income levels, and just 2.2 years for women.

They did also caution that though the gap is not as large as originally thought, it has been widening slightly over the last 30 years, possibly due to differences in education levels.

In short: yes, there is already a (small) gap in the longevity of the rich versus the poor.

Will expensive life-extension treatments widen that gap so much that the poor will be doomed to die early?

The answer to that question has several components:

To answer that first component we can look at some real-world examples, both of existing anti-aging treatments already on the market, and of past medical innovations.

For instance, the diabetes drug metformin is a classic candidate for a possible anti-aging pill. According to a recent metformin meta-analysis, Diabetics taking metformin had significantly lower all-cause mortality than non-diabetics, and a host of other studies have shown other beneficial effects of the drug, like cancer protection and slower brain aging.

And the cost of this possible wonder drug?

According to GoodRx, retail costs for 60 tablets of 500mg of metformin (a 1-2 month supply) range from $9 to $16, even without insurance.

Thats about 15-25 cents a pill.

Other potential life-extension molecules are similarly cheap.

Resveratrol, another possible longevity compound, can be bought on Amazon for $16.99-$27.99 for a 30-90 supply .

Glucosamine costs as little as ten cents a pill, has been the subject of several recent studies showing it decreases all-cause mortality by as much as 39%, and may be as effective for longevity as exercise.

Aspirin (shown to extend life in male mice) costs $1 for 100 pills at my local Rite Aid.

And the list goes on.

All the ones listed above have been known about and studied for decadesin some cases over a centuryis there evidence that newly discovered and developed drugs would be similarly inexpensive?

Its likely. Take vaccines.

Vaccines are a good parallel to anti-aging medicines because they are developed to treat a deadly, widespread disease that impacts large swaths of the human population and they thus have a huge demand and a requirement to distribute to the most people possible. Both also represent huge net benefits to society compared to the costs of not treating the diseases they target (some research indicates slowing aging could save the U.S. $7.1 trillion over 50 years).

Developing a vaccine can cost as much as $2.8-$3.7 billion and yet many vaccines, including those for the most widespread diseases, are offered free-of-cost or at very low prices. For example, the flu vaccine is often free and almost always fully-covered by insurance.

Other vaccines can be had, even without insurance, for as low as $6.

Most of these vaccines have been developed only in the last few decades, and yet their cost is low enough that almost everyone can afford them. The combination of widespread demand and subsidies means that usually the obstacle to getting a vaccine is a lack of education or of desire, not of financial means.

And theres good reason to think new anti-aging treatments may be treated like vaccines. If the FDA labels aging a treatable disease (which may well happen), and since fully 100% of the population is afflicted by this disease, demand for effective longevity treatments will be so high that medical and pharmaceutical companies can afford to set prices low, since they will be selling their products to so many people.

But of course, there may be many different types of therapies and interventions that are developed to reverse and slow aging, and not all of them will be as simple or cheap as a pill or a shot.

What if more complex interventions are needed to reverse aging?

Things like gene therapy can cost millions of dollars. In fact, theres already an (unproven) gene therapy for aging on the market, similar to the procedure longevity influencer Liz Parrish of Bioviva performed on herself in 2015, and its price tag is $1 million.

Not exactly pocket change.

So lets look at how likely expensive longevity treatments are to stay expensive, such that only the wealthy can afford them.

In the last 17 years, the cost to have your whole genome sequenced has gone from roughly $1 billion in 2003, to as low as $299 today.

And most technological innovation follows this same pattern.

First an experimental, expensive innovation is developed. Wealthy early-adopters buy it (think investment bankers and car phones back in the 80s), and their purchases fund the research and development needed to improve the innovation, better distribute it, and make it less expensive. Soon, every person who wants one can afford it, and at a much higher level of quality than the original that was available only to the rich.

High initial prices of a new product are thus almost an extended form of R&D funding (and clinical testing with data provided by early adopters). The rich are essentially paying the money necessary to further develop the product and get it to the masses. What the rich pay for with money, the poor pay for with time.

Its the reason the smartphone in your pocket only costs a couple hundred dollars, and you dont need to lug a car around to use it.

Its also the reason your Apple Watch isnt the size of a room, and yet can do way more health monitoring than the early electrocardiogram machines could (and at a significantly lower price).

In fact, Elon Musks business model for Tesla was explicitly written around this principle. He designed and built an impractical, expensive electric sports car (the Roadster) and sold it at exorbitant prices to the rich, in order to fund the research and development of his more affordable mass market car, the Model 3.

And the medical market is little different from the car market (or other technology markets) in this respect. Despite lots of hand-wringing about rising medical costs, especially in the United States, most of the increase in cost is due to increased consumption, not an increase in the cost of individual medical procedures, devices, or medicines themselves (obviously there are exceptions that get lots of media coverage, but in general this is the case). As we get wealthier, it turns out, we want to buy more medical care.

Intuitively, anti-aging medicine should even help lower the total cost of medical care for people, as individuals will have to spend less on treating the very expensive chronic diseases of old-age like Alzheimers or cancer. These health-cost savings from longevity medicine are often referred to as the Longevity Dividend.

Contrary to popular belief, the real money in almost any market is not in selling boutique treatments to a few billionaires, but selling commercialized interventions to the millions (and, globally, billions) in the middle and lower classes.

Globally, the middle class accounted for $35 trillion in consumer spending, and the lower class another $8 trillion, for a combined spending power of $43 trillion. The rich (those spending over $110 a day) accounted for only $11 trillion in total consumer spending.

Globally, the middle class accounted for $35 trillion in consumer spending, and the lower class another $8 trillion, for a combined spending power of $43 trillion. The rich (those spending over $110 a day) accounted for only $11 trillion in total consumer spending.

All else equal, which market would you rather develop an anti-aging product for?

But of course, despite all this there is still a slim chance that life-extension therapies could buck every historical, technological, and market trend ever observed and somehow remain insanely expensive forever.

So if anti-aging medicines and treatments turn out to be one of those rare types of goods that will only ever be available to the super wealthy, is it moral to ban them or prevent their development?

This philosophical question can be addressed from any number of different frameworks. Its an age-old ethical question: should some people (like the rich) be afforded more opportunities than others (like the poor)?

Bioethicist John Harris offers a utilitarian perspective: If immortality or increased life expectancy is a good, it is doubtful ethics to deny palpable goods to some people because we cannot provide them for all.

Harris further analogizes, We cannot and should not seek to prevent the development of [longevity treatments], any more than we should deny kidney transplants because there are not enough kidneys to go aroundin other words, we should develop life-extension even if we cannot provide it to everyone.

Philosophy professor John Davis, in The American Journal of Bioethics, argues that,

We accept the general principle that taking from the Haves is justified only if doing so makes the Have-nots more than marginally better off. If life-extension is possible, then one must weigh the life-years at stake for those who receive the treatment against whatever burdens making such treatments available might impose on the Have-nots, who cannot afford the treatment.

The greatest burdenis that ones death is worse the earlier one dies relative to how long it is possible to live. For example, a death at 17 is much worse than a death at 97. Because life extension changes how long it is possible to live, life-extension will make death at 97 tragic in a way it has never been beforeHoweverwhen this burden is compared to the number of additional life-years the Haves will lose if life-extension is prevented from becoming available, the burden to the Have-nots is marginal compared to what is at stake for the Haves. Therefore, Inhibiting the development of life-extension is unjustified, even though it will probably not be available to everyone for a long time.

In other words, if life-extension research alleviates aggregate suffering even a little, even if only for the wealthy, anti-aging treatments are a moral good.

The rest is here:
6 Pros and Cons of Immortality: The Ethics of Life Extension