Health
A Dead Theory Still Walks
“The way evolution works makes it impossible for us to possess genes that are specifically designed to cause physiological decline with age or to control how…
Nov 19, 2017
Column
Josh Mitteldorf
Aging & evolutionary biology
Josh Mitteldorf is best known for promoting the theory that aging is not “wearing out” but rather an evolved program that limits lifespan. The surprising fact that our bodies are genetically programmed to age and to die offers an enormous opportunity for medical intervention. He began blogging about aging on this site in 2012. His guidance for a long life is at AgingAdvice.org. His two books on aging are available at Amazon and elsewhere.
Mitteldorf’s PhD is in astrophysics. Since about 2020, he has taken up a new challenge as curator and critic of science on the fringe, writing about promising science that the science establishment has unjustly neglected.
In other areas of life, Mitteldorf’s two daughters were among the first girls to be adopted from China in the 1980s. He has taught a weekly yoga class for fifty years. He is an avid amateur musician, playing piano in chamber groups, French horn in community orchestras. Follow his other writing at mitteldorf.substack.com, and listen to his poetry on YouTube.
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Health
Aging in the news this week
In the press this week High-profile, misleading “proof” that aging is inevitable Disappointing results from Alkahest trials NewYorker article on exercise in a…
Nov 10, 2017
Health
Digging Deeper in Response to Reader Comments
Thank you, readers, for a lively dialog that has developed at the bottom of this page over the last few weeks, touching on some subjects that I have written about and many that I haven’t written about.
Oct 30, 2017
Health
Air Pollution and Life Expectancy
“Increased air pollution cuts victims’ lifespan by a decade, costing billions” blared the headline from Eurekalart last summer.
Oct 17, 2017
Health
Is Cancer a Mitochondrial Disease?
I sent a draft of this column to Thomas Seyfried, who was kind enough to edit it in detail and add references of which I was unware.
Oct 1, 2017
Health
Follow-up on Telomeres: Genetic Studies vs Straight Epidemiology
My August post on this subject stretched my readers’ patience with technical detail.
Sep 12, 2017
Health
New Evidence that Long Telomeres cause Cancer, and Why I Think It’s Wrong
Since 2003, I’ve been saying that long telomeres are a path to long life. The opposing view says that nature allows our telomeres to shorten to protect us against cancer.
Aug 23, 2017
Health
Building the Case that Aging is Controlled from the Brain
Last week, a new study came out fingering the hypothalamus as locus of a clock that modulates aging.
Aug 7, 2017
Health
Mitochondria in Aging, II: Remedies
The once-popular mitochondrial free radical theory of aging proved to be too glib.
Jul 25, 2017
Health
Mitochondria in Aging, I Mechanisms and Background
End of Part I. Next week, I will discuss some supplements and health strategies based on mitochondria.
Jul 14, 2017
Health
Preventing Dementia
Abating Risk of AD Dementia seems to appear out of nowhere. People feel like helpless victims of their genes.
Jun 18, 2017
Health
Aging Gets Personal
Writing this blog has introduced me to a community (that’s you) with which I have shared a great deal of information, and from which I have learned more.
Jun 6, 2017