BIOHACKS YOU CAN DO TO MAXIMIZE LONGEVITY (GTFIH)

[KING REIDYZ]

"Soft" interventions:​

Here is a short list of "soft" biological interventions that will help you with longevity, well-being, cognition, general health, and mental health. The distinction between "soft" and "hard" mainly pertains to personal risk budget - and access to pharamaceuticals.

• Sleep hacking:
  • Good sleep can enhance all other aspects of health & wellbeing. If sleep is shit, most other things do not matter.
  • Make sure your room is very dark; reduced sleep quality even if you do not notice; magnetic tape to your curtains can help
  • Check whether a ChiliPad is something that would work for you
  • Regularity is key. Try going to bed at the same time (+/-30min)
  • If you do melatonin, don't do more than 0.5mg (risk of hormone suppression)
  • Glycine before sleep; 5g seems to be a good dose
  • Use a bright morning lamp
  • Alcohol kills sleep quality
• Exercise:
  • Other than high-quality sleep, there is little that has a greater effect on vitality (energy, mood, health) than consistent, high-quality exercise. Exercise is excellent for metabolic health, musculoskeletal health as well as for baseline brain function (cognition; executive functions; mood).
  • Try to combine all three kinds of different exercises (resistance training; aerobic; anaerobic) as they all seem to have independent benefits.
  • Do aerobic exercise at least 2x per week for at least 30 min (ideally 3h per week); aerobic exercise is not just important for metabolic and cardiovascular health, but the most potent/underrated effects are on brain health. Shoot for a heart rate target of about 180 minus your age.
  • If you can, make about 20% of your aerobic exercise time HIIT
  • Do some form of resistance exercise at least 1x per week; muscle is very important for structural and metabolic health
• Diet:
  • avoid eating too many processed foods
  • avoid sugar (fructose is metabolized differently than glucose).
  • avoid large amounts of high-glycemic carbs during the day (unless you exercised beforehand); this will decrease alertness, energy, and metabolic health
  • Intermittent fasting and/or a ketogenic diet can be very useful though can lead to a "crash" in some individuals down the line - esp. if they undereat. ("crash" = mainly hormonal imbalances in leptin, sex hormones, thyroid function, HPA-dysfunction)
  • Undereating is just as bad as overeating. Calories
• Particular foods: Experiment whether you feel tired after the following foods, which frequently have immunological reactions against them
  • Eggs: a lot of people react badly to eggs (esp. if eaten frequently)
  • Dairy (lactose; reaction to the casein fraction; whey is very insulin-stimulating)
  • Nuts (esp. cashews, peanuts)
• For vegans:
  • Vegans have reduced plasma levels of a host of semi-vitamins predominantly found in meat
  • supplement with B12, L-carnitine, creatine, beta-alanine, L-methylfolate
  • check iron levels
  • make sure you get enough protein
  • For males: avoid excessive amounts of soy products
• Magnesium:
  • Most of us are deficient in magnesium; Mg is needed for hundreds of different enzymes
  • Supplement with 400mg of magnesium per day (not the oxide form) - preferably before sleep as it increases sleep quality and/or can make (some) people drowsy
• Omega 3s:
  • Useful for metabolic health, cognition, mood; lowers inflammation; improves lipid markers
  • Take about 2g of total EPA/DHA per day; preferably in liquid form as capsules often have unnecessarily large amounts of Vit E
• Vit D:
  • Vitamin D is a steroid-like hormone that affects about 5% of the human genome with downstream effects on cognition; mood; energy levels; immune regulation; bone metabolism
  • Supplement with 3.000IU VitD per day (don't do more than that); do not supplement with calcium if you already supplement with VitD

• Do a blood test at least once where you test for the following
  • ferritin (result only valuable if CRP is next to unmeasurable)
  • CRP (-> to test for inflammation)
  • Thyroid: TSH, fT3, fT4
  • Testosterone + SHBG for males
  • VitD
  • B12

• Stop smoking weed: the counterregulation decreases mood and increases anxiety at baseline. Furthermore, weed is terrible for all aspects of cognition.
• Caffeine: Test out whether you feel better without caffeine; if yes, use caffeine only as a "secret weapon". Personally, I feel and function much better if I keep my caffeine intake very low to zero.

"Hard" interventions​

• Nootropics/stimulants:
  • most of the OTC nootropics are worthless (& phenibut is dangerous; no credible safety-data on racetams; ashwagandha is ok)
  • low dose modafinil (not more than once or twice per week)
  • nicotine gum/lozenge is great for boosting executive functions (preferably flavorless nicotine products as having something sweet in one's mouth decreases executive functions for evolutionarily obvious reasons); upside of nicotine is that this can also be taken at night
  • Avoid regular amphetamine usage whenever you can; can lead to anhedonia and prolonged hard-core withdrawal
  • microdosing psychedelics: great for mood, energy, and creativity (IMO psylocibin >> LSD. LSD is more stimulating, longer-lasting, and has a much higher risk of HPPD -esp. if taken at higher doses)

• Bad metabolic health (i.e. prediabetic):
  • Metabolic health is not just the cornerstone of longevity, but also of general health.
  • Cornerstones: Weight, exercise, sleep, diet (see above).
  • If you are young, active, sleep well, and are somewhat lean, metabolic health is unlikely to be a problem
  • The best proxy for metabolic health is insulin sensitivity (best measured via CGM or an OGTT)
  • Drugs to improve metabolic health:
    • SGLT2-inhibitors >> metformin
    • If you are overweight, consider GLP1-agonists (semaglutide > liraglutide). Being overweight is the #1 reason for bad metabolic health.
• Hormones
  • If one of your major hormones is low, this will be a major bottleneck to energy levels, mood, sleep, motivation, and general health.
  • Get a basic hormone panel done at least once and figure out if you are deficient.
  • Research why you might be deficient in a particular hormone and try lifestyle interventions first.
  • Undereating is a common and neglected cause of hormone deficiencies.
  • Consider hormone replacement therapy if you are deficient in one of the major hormones.

• Antidepressants/anti-anxiety agents:
  • Ashwagandha and/or Rhodiola work for some people
• • Vortioxetine (different from other SSRIs): great general-purpose antidepressant; It boosts mood, energy levels, stress resilience, and cognition while having a very benign side effect profile (few adverse effects on sleep, libido, emotionality, weight gain)
• • Nefazodone: great anti-depressant if anxiety is a predominant symptom; small risk of fulminant liver failure (1/Mio.)
• • Bupropion: good antidepressant if low energy levels and difficulty concentrating are present
• • Moclobemide (perhaps with low dose of MAO-B inhibitors): my personal favorite; hard to get in the US
  • irreversible MAOis are to be considered for cases of TRD and they are safer than they are made out to be
  • Ketamine is a great option if you respond to it. Ketamine should be treated with the utmost respect because too much and/or too often might be neurotoxic.
• Sleep drugs:
  • See sleep-hacking above; people rarely need sleep drugs
  • Best sleep drug IMO is low-dose zopiclone/eszopiclone (only occasional use if at all); Zolpidem is crap though widely prescribed; trazodone and other antihistamines lead to hangovers
  • orexin-antagonists are promising but still hard to get.

• Longevity
  • Take care of metabolic health (see above)
  • Do not waste your time and money on NMN/NAD or resveratrol. Close to worthless
• • If you dare to take risks - rapamycin. However, whether rapa is as potent in larger mammals as it is in smaller ones (ie., rodents), we still do not know. Furthermore, little long-term efficacy and safety data on intermittent dosing (i.e, for longevity purposes). I take 5mg once per week and have been doing so for 3 years. Every 6 months I take 1 month off. Def. the riskiest thing on this list. Do your research and check blood markers (hematology; lipid profile; metabolic markers) every few months - esp. initially

 

[KING REIDYZ]

@Ekil73_YT

 

[URL code]

link to original article:

 

[TsarTsar444]

 

[Deleted member 1901]

Here’s some things I disagree with:

Undereating is just as bad as overeating. Calories

Actually, caloric restriction has been shown to improve lifespan, so for longevity overeating is worse, although underrating will make you feel worse.

Supplement with 400mg of magnesium per day

It’s pretty easy to get enough magnesium through whole foods.

Take about 2g of total EPA/DHA per day

Again, better to just eat fish. Likely most of the benefits of fish don’t come from merely omega 3.

Furthermore, weed is terrible for all aspects of cognition.

Actually, weed was shown to reverse brain aging in old mice.

Caffeine: Test out whether you feel better without caffeine; if yes, use caffeine only as a "secret weapon". Personally, I feel and function much better if I keep my caffeine intake very low to zero.

I also don’t use caffeine regularly, but caffeine has been shown to extend lifespan in worms and is an mTOR inhibitor. Additionally, drinking coffee or tea is associated with longevity in humans.

 

[7zyzz7]

DNR but upvoted for effort nice essay

 

[KING REIDYZ]

Bump

 

[7zyzz7]

up

 

[KING REIDYZ]

up

 

[the_nextDavidLaid]

DNRD you terrorist

 

[KING REIDYZ]

DNRD you terrorist

Haha funny…

 

[KING REIDYZ]

DNRD you terrorist

Also terrorist are the opposite of me in Islam, I’m a Sufi

 

[Nims]

Do a blood test at least once where you test for the following

Are my results shit?

ferritin (result only valuable if CRP is next to unmeasurable)

48.4 ug/L

CRP (-> to test for inflammation)

<0.15 mg/L

Thyroid: TSH, fT3, fT4

TSH: 1.92 mIU/L
fT3: 6.7 pmol/L
fT4: 16.5 pmol/L

VitD

62 nmol/L

B12

Active: 36.5 pmol/L

 

[ReinhardRacist]

Dnr

 

[KING REIDYZ]

Dnr

Your bad

 

[KING REIDYZ]

Ok

"Soft" interventions:​

Here is a short list of "soft" biological interventions that will help you with longevity, well-being, cognition, general health, and mental health. The distinction between "soft" and "hard" mainly pertains to personal risk budget - and access to pharamaceuticals.

• Sleep hacking:
  • Good sleep can enhance all other aspects of health & wellbeing. If sleep is shit, most other things do not matter.
  • Make sure your room is very dark; reduced sleep quality even if you do not notice; magnetic tape to your curtains can help
  • Check whether a ChiliPad is something that would work for you
  • Regularity is key. Try going to bed at the same time (+/-30min)
  • If you do melatonin, don't do more than 0.5mg (risk of hormone suppression)
  • Glycine before sleep; 5g seems to be a good dose
  • Use a bright morning lamp
  • Alcohol kills sleep quality
• Exercise:
  • Other than high-quality sleep, there is little that has a greater effect on vitality (energy, mood, health) than consistent, high-quality exercise. Exercise is excellent for metabolic health, musculoskeletal health as well as for baseline brain function (cognition; executive functions; mood).
  • Try to combine all three kinds of different exercises (resistance training; aerobic; anaerobic) as they all seem to have independent benefits.
  • Do aerobic exercise at least 2x per week for at least 30 min (ideally 3h per week); aerobic exercise is not just important for metabolic and cardiovascular health, but the most potent/underrated effects are on brain health. Shoot for a heart rate target of about 180 minus your age.
  • If you can, make about 20% of your aerobic exercise time HIIT
  • Do some form of resistance exercise at least 1x per week; muscle is very important for structural and metabolic health
• Diet:
  • avoid eating too many processed foods
  • avoid sugar (fructose is metabolized differently than glucose).
  • avoid large amounts of high-glycemic carbs during the day (unless you exercised beforehand); this will decrease alertness, energy, and metabolic health
  • Intermittent fasting and/or a ketogenic diet can be very useful though can lead to a "crash" in some individuals down the line - esp. if they undereat. ("crash" = mainly hormonal imbalances in leptin, sex hormones, thyroid function, HPA-dysfunction)
  • Undereating is just as bad as overeating. Calories
• Particular foods:Experiment whether you feel tired after the following foods, which frequently have immunological reactions against them
  • Eggs: a lot of people react badly to eggs (esp. if eaten frequently)
  • Dairy (lactose; reaction to the casein fraction; whey is very insulin-stimulating)
  • Nuts (esp. cashews, peanuts)
• For vegans:
  • Vegans have reduced plasma levels of a host of semi-vitamins predominantly found in meat
  • supplement with B12, L-carnitine, creatine, beta-alanine, L-methylfolate
  • check iron levels
  • make sure you get enough protein
  • For males: avoid excessive amounts of soy products
• Magnesium:
  • Most of us are deficient in magnesium; Mg is needed for hundreds of different enzymes
  • Supplement with 400mg of magnesium per day (not the oxide form) - preferably before sleep as it increases sleep quality and/or can make (some) people drowsy
• Omega 3s:
  • Useful for metabolic health, cognition, mood; lowers inflammation; improves lipid markers
  • Take about 2g of total EPA/DHA per day; preferably in liquid form as capsules often have unnecessarily large amounts of Vit E
• Vit D:
  • Vitamin D is a steroid-like hormone that affects about 5% of the human genome with downstream effects on cognition; mood; energy levels; immune regulation; bone metabolism
  • Supplement with 3.000IU VitD per day (don't do more than that); do not supplement with calcium if you already supplement with VitD

• Do a blood test at least once where you test for the following
  • ferritin (result only valuable if CRP is next to unmeasurable)
  • CRP (-> to test for inflammation)
  • Thyroid: TSH, fT3, fT4
  • Testosterone + SHBG for males
  • VitD
  • B12

• Stop smoking weed: the counterregulation decreases mood and increases anxiety at baseline. Furthermore, weed is terrible for all aspects of cognition.
• Caffeine: Test out whether you feel better without caffeine; if yes, use caffeine only as a "secret weapon". Personally, I feel and function much better if I keep my caffeine intake very low to zero.

"Hard" interventions​

• Nootropics/stimulants:
  • most of the OTC nootropics are worthless (& phenibut is dangerous; no credible safety-data on racetams; ashwagandha is ok)
  • low dose modafinil (not more than once or twice per week)
  • nicotine gum/lozenge is great for boosting executive functions (preferably flavorless nicotine products as having something sweet in one's mouth decreases executive functions for evolutionarily obvious reasons); upside of nicotine is that this can also be taken at night
  • Avoid regular amphetamine usage whenever you can; can lead to anhedonia and prolonged hard-core withdrawal
  • microdosing psychedelics: great for mood, energy, and creativity (IMO psylocibin >> LSD. LSD is more stimulating, longer-lasting, and has a much higher risk of HPPD -esp. if taken at higher doses)

• Bad metabolic health (i.e. prediabetic):
  • Metabolic health is not just the cornerstone of longevity, but also of general health.
  • Cornerstones: Weight, exercise, sleep, diet (see above).
  • If you are young, active, sleep well, and are somewhat lean, metabolic health is unlikely to be a problem
  • The best proxy for metabolic health is insulin sensitivity (best measured via CGM or an OGTT)
  • Drugs to improve metabolic health:
    • SGLT2-inhibitors >> metformin
    • If you are overweight, consider GLP1-agonists (semaglutide > liraglutide). Being overweight is the #1 reason for bad metabolic health.
• Hormones
  • If one of your major hormones is low, this will be a major bottleneck to energy levels, mood, sleep, motivation, and general health.
  • Get a basic hormone panel done at least once and figure out if you are deficient.
  • Research why you might be deficient in a particular hormone and try lifestyle interventions first.
  • Undereating is a common and neglected cause of hormone deficiencies.
  • Consider hormone replacement therapy if you are deficient in one of the major hormones.

• Antidepressants/anti-anxiety agents:
  • Ashwagandha and/or Rhodiola work for some people
• • Vortioxetine (different from other SSRIs): great general-purpose antidepressant; It boosts mood, energy levels, stress resilience, and cognition while having a very benign side effect profile (few adverse effects on sleep, libido, emotionality, weight gain)
• • Nefazodone: great anti-depressant if anxiety is a predominant symptom; small risk of fulminant liver failure (1/Mio.)
• • Bupropion: good antidepressant if low energy levels and difficulty concentrating are present
• • Moclobemide (perhaps with low dose of MAO-B inhibitors): my personal favorite; hard to get in the US
  • irreversible MAOis are to be considered for cases of TRD and they are safer than they are made out to be
  • Ketamine is a great option if you respond to it. Ketamine should be treated with the utmost respect because too much and/or too often might be neurotoxic.
• Sleep drugs:
  • See sleep-hacking above; people rarely need sleep drugs
  • Best sleep drug IMO is low-dose zopiclone/eszopiclone (only occasional use if at all); Zolpidem is crap though widely prescribed; trazodone and other antihistamines lead to hangovers
  • orexin-antagonists are promising but still hard to get.

• Longevity
  • Take care of metabolic health (see above)
  • Do not waste your time and money on NMN/NAD or resveratrol. Close to worthless
• • If you dare to take risks - rapamycin. However, whether rapa is as potent in larger mammals as it is in smaller ones (ie., rodents), we still do not know. Furthermore, little long-term efficacy and safety data on intermittent dosing (i.e, for longevity purposes). I take 5mg once per week and have been doing so for 3 years. Every 6 months I take 1 month off. Def. the riskiest thing on this list. Do your research and check blood markers (hematology; lipid profile; metabolic markers) every few months - esp. initially