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“To understand what it means to live longer, you have to understand what ends life.”

— Dr. Peter Attia

Peter Attia, MD (@PeterAttiaMD), is the founder of Early Medical, a medical practice that applies the principles of Medicine 3.0 to patients with the goal of lengthening their lifespan and simultaneously improving their healthspan. He is the host of The Drive, one of the most popular podcasts covering the topics of health and medicine. 

Dr. Attia received his medical degree from the Stanford University School of Medicine and trained for five years at the Johns Hopkins Hospital in general surgery, where he was the recipient of several prestigious awards, including Resident of the Year. He spent two years at the National Institutes of Health as a surgical oncology fellow at the National Cancer Institute, where his research focused on immune-based therapies for melanoma.

His new book is Outlive: The Science and Art of Longevity (3/28).

Please enjoy!

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform. Watch the interview on YouTube here.

Brought to you by  Wealthfront  high-yield savings account,  Helix Sleep  premium mattresses, and  Shopify  global commerce platform providing tools to start, grow, market, and manage a retail business. 

The transcript of this episode can be found here. Transcripts of all episodes can be found here.

Listen onApple Podcasts[image error]Listen onSpotify[image error]Listen onOvercast#661: Dr. Peter Attia — The Science and Art of Longevity, Optimizing Protein, Alcohol Rules, Lessons from Glucose Monitoring with CGMs, Boosting Your VO2 Max, Preventing Alzheimer's Disease, Early Cancer Detection, How to Use DEXA Scans, Nature’s Longevity Drug, and More

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Want to hear Peter’s last time on the show? Listen to this conversation in which we discuss liquid biopsies, the four pillars of exercise someone seeking to improve their metabolic health should understand, methods for remedying modern posture problems, raising kids to be habitually active adults, the three levers of Peter’s nutritional framework, increasing scientific literacy, current pharmacological candidates for extending lifespan and healthspan, everything you ever wanted to know about zone two training, and much more.

#517: Dr. Peter Attia on Longevity Drugs, Alzheimer’s Disease, and the 3 Most Important Levers to Pull

What was your favorite quote or lesson from this episode? Please let me know in the comments.

SCROLL BELOW FOR LINKS AND SHOW NOTES…

SELECTED LINKS FROM THE EPISODEConnect with Dr. Peter Attia:

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | YouTube

Outlive: The Science and Art of Longevity by Peter Attia | Amazon Engineer Your Own Personalized Longevity Playbook | Early MedicalThe Peter Attia Drive PodcastDr. Peter Attia on Longevity Drugs, Alzheimer’s Disease, and the 3 Most Important Levers to Pull | The Tim Ferriss Show #517Peter Attia, M.D. — Fasting, Metformin, Athletic Performance, and More | The Tim Ferriss Show #398Dr. Peter Attia vs. Tim Ferriss | The Tim Ferriss Show #352Dr. Peter Attia on Life-Extension, Drinking Jet Fuel, Ultra-Endurance, Human Foie Gras, and More | The Tim Ferriss Show #50DEXA Scan (DXA): Bone Density Test, What Is It and How It’s Done | Cleveland ClinicAssessment of Lean Mass and Physical Performance in Sarcopenia | Journal of Clinical DensitometryFat-Free Mass Index (FFMI) Calculator | Omni CalculatorAMA #11: All Things Fasting | The Peter Attia Drive #89How Much Protein Should You Eat? | Peter AttiaFood Sources for Nine Essential Amino Acids | Food UnfoldedThe Smart Diet Coaching App | Carbon5 Proven Benefits of Branched-Chain Amino Acids (BCAAs) | HealthlinemTOR (Mechanistic Target of Rapamycin) | WikipediaLacto-Ovo-Vegetarian Diet: Benefits, Downsides, and Meal Plan | HealthlineWhat is Ketosis? The Science Explained. | Peter AttiaJocko Willink, Retired Navy SEAL: Objective, Strategy, and Tactics, Leadership, Protocols, Dealing With Death, and Applying the Many Lessons Learned from War | The Peter Attia Drive #55USA Causes of Death by Age and Gender | World Life ExpectancyAMA #41: Medicine 3.0, Developments in the Field of Aging, Healthy Habits in Times of Stress, and More | The Peter Attia Drive #231The 4-Hour Body: An Uncommon Guide to Rapid Fat Loss, Incredible Sex, and Becoming Superhuman by Timothy Ferriss | AmazonStaying Safe from COVID-19 | Johns Hopkins MedicineWhat If Moore’s Law Applied to Humans as Well? | The Washington PostMedicine 1.0, 2.0, and 3.0 | Peter Attia, TwitterFunny Medicine: Hippocrates and the Four Humours | GaviScientific Method | Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyRichard Feynman Teaches You the Scientific Method | Farnam StreetDirty Doctors Finished What an Assassin’s Bullet Started: Disregarding New Scientific Information Can Be Deadly | Scientific AmericanTreatments for HIV/AIDS | Stanford Health CareTreating Hepatitis C | American Liver FoundationNixon’s War on Cancer: Why It Mattered | Fred Hutch Cancer CenterNeurodegenerative Diseases | NIEHSWhat is ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis)? | The ALS AssociationHuntington’s Disease | National Institute of Neurological Disorders and StrokeIs Diabetes Becoming the Biggest Epidemic of the 21st Century? | International Journal of Health SciencesStudy Design 101: Randomized Controlled Trial | The Himmelfarb Health Sciences LibraryReading Mendelian Randomisation Studies: A Guide, Glossary, and Checklist for Clinicians | BMJWhat Is ApoB? | Pritkin Longevity CenterWeekly Emails Archives | Peter AttiaStudying the Studies Archives | Peter AttiaStudy Design 101: Cohort Study | The Himmelfarb Health Sciences LibraryObservational Studies: Epidemiology | Research Guides at Pennsylvania College of TechnologyResearch Explained in Practical Summaries (REPS) | BiolayneThe Man Who Tries Methods, Ignoring Principles, Is Sure to Have Trouble | Quote InvestigatorHow to Learn Any Language in Three Months | Tim FerrissAMA #30: How to Read and Understand Scientific Studies | The Peter Attia Drive #188Bad Science: Quacks, Hacks, and Big Pharma Flacks by Ben Goldacre | AmazonHills Criteria of CausationBradford Hill Criteria | WikipediaYou’re Blowing Smoke up My Ass, Right? | The BookwormeryHow to Lie with Statistics by Darrell Huff | AmazonDr. Matthew Walker, All Things Sleep — How to Improve Sleep, How Sleep Ties Into Alzheimer’s Disease and Weight Gain, and How Medications (Ambien, Trazodone, etc.), Caffeine, THC/CBD, Psychedelics, Exercise, Smart Drugs, Fasting, and More Affect Sleep | The Tim Ferriss Show #650That Sleep Tracker Could Make Your Insomnia Worse | The New York TimesAlcohol Archives | Peter AttiaSleep & Alcohol: Part 1 | The Matt Walker PodcastSleep & Alcohol: Part 2 | The Matt Walker PodcastNutter Butter Peanut Butter Sandwich Cookies | AmazonHow to Use a Continuous Glucose Monitor (CGM) to Optimize Your Nutrition (Clip) | The Tim Ferriss ShowDexcom Continuous Glucose Monitoring | DexcomFreeStyle Libre 2 Continuous Glucose Monitor | Abbott USDietary Carbohydrate Restriction in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus and Metabolic Syndrome: Time for a Critical Appraisal | Nutrition & MetabolismAll About Your A1C | CDCRaisinets | AmazonExercise Can Raise Blood Glucose (Blood Sugar) | ADAHostel 2 | Prime VideoWall Street | Prime VideoHawthorne Effect: How It Works and Is It Real? | InvestopediaVO2 Max: How to Measure and Improve It | Cleveland ClinicMuscle Fiber Type Transitions with Exercise Training | NCBIStrength Training Can Help Protect the Brain from Degeneration | The University of SydneyConcentric, Isometric, and Eccentric Training | Athletic LabBest Hamstring Exercise: Nordic Hamstring Curl to Reduce Risk of Injury | Muscle and MotionHow to Do a Hip Hinge | Verywell FitTip: Axial Loading – What You Need to Know | T-NationTop Five Hand Strengthening Exercises For Stronger Hands | Virtual Hand CareWhat is Rucking? | GORUCKTraining Zones Explained | ACTIVEBlood Lactate Measurements and Analysis during Exercise: A Guide for Clinicians | Journal of Diabetes Science and TechnologyThe Beginner’s Gear Guide for Ski Touring or Skinning | InsiderThe Rucking Company | GORUCKWeighted Vest Vs. Rucking | Weight Loss Made PracticalThe Comfort Crisis: Embrace Discomfort to Reclaim Your Wild, Happy, Healthy Self by Michael Easter | AmazonCognitive Health and Neurodegenerative Disease Prevention | Peter AttiaPhysical Exercise and Dementia | Alzheimer’s SocietyBrain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor: A Key Molecule for Memory in the Healthy and the Pathological Brain | Frontiers In Cellular NeuroscienceA New Frontier for Early Cancer Detection? Discussing the Grail Blood Test. | Peter AttiaWhole Body MRI Scans | PrenuvoAlzheimer’s Genes: Are You at Risk? | Mayo ClinicCystatin C | National Kidney FoundationCreatinine | National Kidney FoundationFOLFOX Regimen | NCI Dictionary of Cancer TermsBreast Cancer Hormone Receptor Status | Estrogen ReceptorGuy Winch, Ph.D.: Emotional First Aid and How To Treat Psychological Injuries | The Peter Attia Drive #146Stuart Smalley’s Daily Affirmation | SNLTheranos: A Fallen Unicorn | InvestopediaSHOW NOTES[07:00] How and why Peter’s muscle mass has increased significantly.[18:48] Why the long wait for Outlive: The Science and Art of Longevity ?[23:19] Objective, strategy, and tactics.[28:50] From Medicine 1.0 to Medicine 3.0. [39:04] Randomized control trial results: guidelines, not gospel.[43:21] Revisiting why and how one should increase their medical literacy.[52:44] Avoiding scientific method misconceptions.[55:43] Austin Bradford Hill.[56:22] Observational study versus randomized control trial.[1:00:09] Are sleep trackers downgrading the quality of our sleep?[1:02:53] Under what conditions does Peter feel alcohol might be worth its downsides?[1:06:47] Continuous glucose monitors (CGMs).[1:18:24] Underutilized metrics and tools for expanding health and lifespan.[1:25:01] Strength.[1:33:11] Rucking around and finding out about VO2 max.[1:38:32] Finding the zone two sweet spot.[1:41:10] How skinning and rucking have upped my endurance.[1:42:24] Rucking vs. weighted vests.[1:46:39] Are neurodegenerative diseases preventable?[1:51:47] Helping your doctor understand and embrace Medicine 3.0.[1:53:47] How much is an ounce of prevention worth to you?[1:58:23] Early cancer screening.[2:06:33] Outlive chapters.[2:08:46] The chapter on emotional health that almost didn’t make the book.[2:10:16] Peter’s 47 affirmations.[2:14:18] Parting thoughts.MORE PETER ATTIA QUOTES FROM THE INTERVIEW

“Despite what a lot of the epidemiology will tell people, alcohol is not good for you in any dose. It doesn’t mean we shouldn’t drink it at all, but let’s not delude ourselves into thinking it’s actually healthy at some low dose. It’s not.”
— Dr. Peter Attia

“My response to alcohol is, if I drink something that doesn’t taste incredible, I pour it out. I’m never going to tolerate a bad glass of wine, ever. It’s just not worth it.”
— Dr. Peter Attia

“Seven drinks in one day is very different than one drink a day for seven days. It’s the frequency and dose that defines the poison.”
— Dr. Peter Attia

“Not one to just clear the bar, I want to be considerably above the bar.”
— Dr. Peter Attia

“To understand what it means to live longer, you have to understand what ends life.”
— Dr. Peter Attia

“When I went to medical school, I didn’t learn a single thing about nutrition or exercise or sleep or stress management or emotional health. I learned a lot about pharmacology. And it’s tempting at this point to say, ‘Well, pharmacology is either good or bad.’ No, it’s both, right? Pharmacology is good and it’s really valuable, but over-indexing it is bad.”
— Dr. Peter Attia

“Sometimes more data is not always the answer.”
— Dr. Peter Attia

“Any measurement in isolation can be ridiculous and can be gamed. We shouldn’t ignore blood glucose any more than we should ignore body weight or body fat or body composition. We just have to understand that it’s one of many tools that we can look at.”
— Dr. Peter Attia

“To get into that top 2.5 percent of the population where you really start to see an enormous gap between you and everybody else in terms of lifespan, yeah, maybe only a quarter of the population has the potential to get there. But the point is everybody has the potential to be more fit than they are, outside of people who are already doing everything they can. So just going from being in the bottom 25 percent of the population to the 25th to 50th percentile of the population cuts your risk of all-cause mortality in half at any point in time. There’s nothing that compares to that.”
— Dr. Peter Attia

PEOPLE MENTIONEDHerculesDavid SabatiniBill PearlEd ThorpHippocratesFrancis BaconRichard P. FeynmanIgnaz SemmelweisRobert KochJoseph ListerRichard M. NixonParacelsusRobert KaplanLayne NortonRalph Waldo EmersonBen GoldacreAustin Bradford HillDarrell HuffGordon GekkoLance ArmstrongJason J. McCarthyMichael Easter | TwitterDaniel PalencharBill GiffordHugh JackmanStuart Smalley

The post Dr. Peter Attia — The Science and Art of Longevity, Optimizing Protein, Alcohol Rules, Lessons from Glucose Monitoring with CGMs, Boosting Your VO2 Max, Preventing Alzheimer’s Disease, Early Cancer Detection, How to Use DEXA Scans, Nature’s Longevity Drug, and More (#661) appeared first on The Blog of Author Tim Ferriss.