Incorporate exercise into your routine, as it is described as the surest and best intervention to increase both healthspan and lifespan.
Focus on understanding and implementing good nutritional practices, as nutrition is considered a cornerstone for healthspan and lifespan, especially when combined with exercise.
Establish a daily fasting period by restricting your eating window to activate beneficial pathways like insulin suppression, TOR suppression, and autophagy. Aim for at least a 14-hour daily fast (e.g., eating within a 10-hour window).
Do not follow the traditional recommendation of three meals and three snacks daily, as this pattern is considered the ‘worst possible way’ to eat based on current research on fasting periods.
Reduce your total carbohydrate intake, as high carbohydrate consumption activates the insulin signaling pathway, which is linked to faster aging and higher all-cause mortality.
Engage in fasting to activate autophagy, an important cellular cleanup mechanism that is beneficial for healthspan.
Practice caloric restriction, prolonged fasting, intermittent fasting, or a low-protein ketogenic diet to suppress mTOR activity, which is associated with healthspan extension.
Engage in fasting or carbohydrate restriction to increase beta-hydroxybutyrate, which functions as an HDAC inhibitor to increase FOXO3 expression, protecting against oxidative stress and delaying aging.
Explore a ketogenic diet, as it was observed to improve memory in older mice to levels better than younger mice and prevent age-related memory decline.
If following a ketogenic diet, ensure protein intake is not excessively high to avoid increased IGF-1 signaling, which can potentially increase cancer risk.
If aiming for significant ketosis through fasting, extend your fasting window to at least 16 hours, as ketone levels typically begin to rise around this time.
Explore supplements like nicotinamide riboside or nicotinamide mononucleotide to potentially replenish decreasing NAD+ levels during aging, but be aware that the underlying cause of NAD+ decline is not fully understood.
Consider taking nicotinamide riboside before exposure to acute loud noise (e.g., rock concerts) as it protected mice from noise-induced hearing loss, an effect dependent on SIRT3.
When undertaking long-term health interventions, pay close attention to how you feel, as individual responses vary and validated biomarkers for aging are still emerging.
If elderly, consume more protein to lower all-cause mortality and mitigate muscle mass loss, which is approximately 10% per decade starting in midlife.
Practice caloric restriction, fasting, or carbohydrate restriction to activate PPAR-alpha, which is critical for ketogenesis and may mediate some beneficial effects of the ketogenic diet.
If considering a ketogenic diet, be prepared for strict carbohydrate restriction and high discipline, as it is a difficult diet to sustain long-term due to its significant carbohydrate restrictions.