Live Long with Peter Bowes

Welcome to our new weekend supplement to the Live Long and Master aging podcast. To mark LLAMA's fifth birthday this week, we're launching a series of short interviews that delve into daily routines, lifestyle hacks and longevity-driven habits. My Day | My Life explores the lives of people who have, in one way or another, mastered the art of aging. Whether it be through diet, exercise, m...

There is a plethora of science-backed information about how to optimize our health and wellbeing. The challenge, for most of us, is how to filter it and then apply the latest knowledge and innovations to our own lives.  There is undoubtedly a future in personalized medicine and the use of artificial intelligence, to guide our lifestyle decisions. InsideTracker is a health platform that curates pee...

What is it about life that makes it worth living? Sure, living a long time with good health and vitality is an aspirational goal, but do you know how to age in a meaningful way? In fact, what is it about living that gives it value and substance? Are we able to mine the wisdom of our years to enhance life's experiences as we grow older? Andrew G. Marshall is marital therapist, a prolific autho...

Aging with finesse sounds infinitely more desirable than the humdrum process of simply getting older. The language we use in describing the aging process is all important. Perhaps even more important is having a plan, as we age. Even though we "don't feel that old" there is an inevitability about the passing years - despite the latest science-backed interventions that may help us sl...

Muscle endurance can be improved, in older adults, without physical exercise, according to the results of a new clinical trial.  Scientists in the US and Switzerland say their research suggests supplementation with a gut metabolite, known as urolithin A, may counteract age-associated muscle decline.  This is significant as a potential intervention that could slow the onset of frailty in older peop...

There are myriad lifestyle, dietary and exercise interventions that could lead to a longer healthspan and compressed morbidity.  Preventing chronic disease, as we age, is crucial but longevity science is also focused on shorter terms goals, such as staying physically and mentally healthy, today and tomorrow.  Alan Graves is the CEO of Do Not Age, a UK-based longevity research company , which has t...

Longevity science has been moving at breakneck speed in recent years, reinforcing the view of some innovators that we are on the cusp of a 200-year lifespan.  Whether it be longevity in a pill, artificial organs or gene therapy to cure diseases, recent breakthroughs suggest many of us already have the tools needed to live much longer and better.  Sergey Young is a longevity investor and visionary...

As families spend time together over the holidays, who is the happiest person in the room? Grandma, grandad? Growing old gets a bad rap but studies have shown that as people age, they enjoy some of their best days. There is no need to dread your next big birthday, says Katharine Esty, a psychologist and author of Eightysomethings: A Practical Guide to Letting Go, Aging Well, and Finding Unexpected...

Older cyclists often try to push the boundaries of athletic prowess as they pursue their life-long, or new-found passion. But is it wise to continue running the engine indefinitely?  Phil Cavell is the author of The Midlife Cyclist and the co-founder of Cyclefit, a UK-based company dedicated to cycling analysis and biomechanics. In this LLAMA podcast interview the veteran club cyclist discuses the...

Achieving a great age, with good health and vitality, is at the heart of everything we discuss on this podcast.  But who are we, as human beings? What is our purpose and what is the difference between getting old and growing old?  Richard Leider, founder of Inventure – The Purpose Company, is one of America’s preeminent executive-life coaches. He has spent a lifetime trying to better understand th...

To maintain mental and physical vitality, the status of the most basic building blocks of our bodies is all important.  There has been an explosion in research relating to cellular health and the measures we can take to nurture their wellbeing. Greg Macpherson is a biotechnologist, pharmacist and the author of Harnessing the Nine Hallmarks of Aging: Turning Our Cells Into Little Pharmaceutical Fac...

As we grow older, frailty becomes an issue due to declining muscle strength. For athletes, muscle fatigue can be a huge challenge at any age, but there is scientific evidence that nutritional interventions can slow down or reverse the process.  The LLAMA podcast has previously covered the science behind muscular health and the potential benefits of Mitopure, a pure form of the metabolite compound...

Regular exercise is key pillar of healthy longevity. But which activities really make a difference – running, walking, a gym class, yoga, weightlifting? Does it have to involve breaking into a sweat, or ten thousand steps, to do any good?  Some health practitioners have taken to advocating daily movement over traditional exercise. Stefan Zavalin is a Doctor of Physical Therapy and the owner of Lov...

Wearable technology has evolved at a pace recently, making it possible to better understand how our bodies respond to food and exercise. A continuous glucose monitor (CGM) device provides real-time feedback, tracking blood sugar levels throughout the day and night. LLAMA host Peter Bowes has been wearing a CGM to learn more about my metabolism. It was provided by NutriSense, a US company that uses...

Real-time information about how our bodies respond to food and exercise is transforming preventative healthcare. Wearable technology provides immediate feedback during a workout and can collate and interpret complex data based on our food choices. One of the deepest dives into the inner workings of our metabolism is achieved through continuous glucose monitoring (CGM). Carlee Hayes is the lead die...

It's often the little things that help us most. Enhancing our wellbeing and living better usually starts with baby steps. Small changes - you could call them lifestyle hacks - can make a big difference to both our physical and mental health. In our latest LLAMA LIVE! conversation, via @TwitterSpaces , we discussed the ways we can kickstart a healthier life by implementing small, progressive c...

Dr. Jonathon Sullivan has spent much of his professional life treating patients on the brink of death. Working at a Level I trauma center he became familiar with medical conditions that claim lives far too early. But emergency medicine also helped the former US marine develop a deeper understanding of the human body and the reasons people get sick as they grow older. Now, as the owner, head coach...

Healthspan - what is it and why is it important? This is our second LLAMA LIVE! - a Twitter Spaces conversation about human longevity.  Host Peter Bowes chats with Dr. Jonathan Sullivan, owner and Clinical Director,  Greysteel Strength and Conditioning Stefan Zavalin, a doctor of physical therapy and owner of Love to Move , a consulting company which offers advice for environment design and physic...

This is our first LLAMA LIVE! episode - a Twitter Spaces conversation about human longevity, healthspan and lessons learned from Covid-19.  Dr. Felice Gersh, an integrative medicine specialist, based in Irvine, California, joined Peter Bowes for a live discussion, earlier today. The conversation, published here as a podcast, covers children and Covid, immunity, obesity, inflammation, resilience th...

Mineral deficiencies can have a crippling impact on our everyday health and vitality, as well as long term implications for healthspan.  The food we eat and the environments we live in, play a critical role in maintaining a delicate balance of chemicals that sustain life.  But even the most ideal-sounding diet can fall short of providing an essential mix of minerals.  Barton Scott discovered the h...

Developing a health strategy to navigate the decades ahead can be a daunting task.  In fact, many people focus on their wellbeing only when ill health strikes and an intervention is needed to tackle sickness. Jim LaValle, a California-based clinical pharmacist, health educator and the author of Cracking the Metabolic Code: 9 Keys to Optimal Health, is on a mission to demystify the process.  The fo...

What if we all had a personal, digital avatar to guide and nurture our lives, as we pursue a long healthspan? The concept, in a world of personalized medicine, could become a reality, according to future-thinker and longevity entrepreneur  Dmitry Kaminskiy.  The London-based investor and co founder of the UK All Party Parliamentary group for Longevity focuses on the intersection of artificial inte...

There are some people who just never seem to get any older. Whether it be their appearance or mental attitude, the passage of time eludes them.  How do they do it?   There are myriad explanations;  our genes, physical and dietary lifestyles, mindset and perhaps an element of luck. The truth is that all these factors - and many others - likely play a role is determining our destiny. Jason Elias is...

In a world where we are bombarded with health advice, it is easy to feel lost in a sea of unverified information. From dietary supplementation to exercise, we are inundated with suggestions, hard-sell advertisements and sometimes peer pressure, to take up one regime or another. LLAMA’s advice is simple; consult your primary care doctor or healthcare professional if you are considering lifestyle ch...

If only we could detect all life threatening diseases before symptoms occur and early enough to reverse the course of those conditions.  We are on the cusp of being able to achieve that.  Significant, recent developments, in the field of genomic testing, mean that scientists are able to pinpoint the warning signs for some major degenerative illnesses, in time to make life-saving interventions. In...