I help you reach top 1% health
Author, anthropologist
YouTube 230k; Instagram 410k
11 subscribers
Sep 14 • 8 tweets • 3 min read
Green tea is one of the healthiest beverages in the world
- improves cardiovascular disease risk factors
- improves heart health
- improves metabolic health markers
- targets all hallmarks of aging
- reduces visceral fat
- is associated with lower mortality
Full thread on green tea benefits⬇️⬇️
Graph from: DOI:10.20944/preprints202309.0582.v1
Green tea contains many bioactive compounds that target all the hallmarks of aging:
- genomic instability
- telomere attrition
- epigenetic alterations
- loss of proteostasis
- impaired autophagy
- deregulated nutrient sensing
- mitochondrial dysfunction
- cellular senescence
- stem cell exhaustion
- altered intracellular communication
- chronic inflammation
- gut dysbiosis
Most of these effects are mediated by EGCG and other polyphenolic compounds in green tea
Graph: DOI: 10.14336/AD.2025.0398
Sep 9 • 6 tweets • 4 min read
Microneedling is crazily effective for skin aging
The small needles cause microtrauma, triggering collagen synthesis and skin repair - up to 400% increase in collagen synthesis
Paper: mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/1…
In this study, microneedling + topical vitamin A and C resulted in 658% higher epidermal thickness compared to no treatment
Ice baths are a very popular trend on social media
So are saunas but to a slightly lesser degree
But which one has more health benefits?⬇️⬇️
Sauna has many protective health benefits and appears to even offset the higher risk of all-cause mortality related to lower socioeconomic status, high blood pressure, and high inflammation levels
PMID: 37270272
Aug 10 • 14 tweets • 13 min read
I analyzed Bryan Johnson’s biomarkers… and he doesn’t have the best in the world.
I analyzed 65 of the markers he’s published:
-44 of them I have better results
-9 of them, Bryan has better results
-12 of them are equal
In this thread, I’m sharing the markers and comparing them⬇️⬇️
P.S.
1. I’m not claiming I'm the healthiest person alive or to have the world’s best biomarkers—but I do have factually better biomarkers than Bryan.
There are dozens of people who have better biomarkers than Bryan and me out there.
2. This isn’t about “dunking” on Bryan. Bryan always asks for people to challenge his results and prove if someone has better markers, so here I am.
3. I disagree that you can base someone's health solely on biomarkers because biomarkers can be gamed with pharmaceuticals, etc. But I'm just playing Bryan's own game here.
4. Age is a moot point. Bryan says he has the best biomarkers of anyone in the world. If chronological age mattered, the “healthiest person” would always be an 18–20-year-old.
I’m 30, and my biomarkers are better than his, so his claim doesn’t hold. He could argue he’s the healthiest 47-year-old, but not the healthiest overall.
Now that this is out of the way, let's go through all the biomarkers.
Quick summary of the differences in our biomarkers:
-Bryan has good metabolic health, but I have slightly better
-Bryan has poor kidney function – mine is excellent
-We have semi-equal liver values and lipids
-Bryan’s fitness (strength/VO2) is good for his age, but not elite by any means. Mine is significantly better
-We both have normal hormone levels, nothing extraordinary
-Bryan’s PhenoAge (biological age) based on his biomarkers is 8.81 years lower than his chronological age, mine is 18.5 years lower
Aug 3 • 7 tweets • 4 min read
Regular exercise reduces the likelihood of plaque accumulation in the arteries
However, many long-term exercisers appear to have coronary artery calcification, indicating atherosclerosis progression
The fascinating thing is that despite the higher plaque, those people still have lower rates of cardiovascular disease events and mortality
Graph: academic.oup.com/eurheartj/adva…
Middle-aged and older athletes, especially those who exercise for over 2000 MET-min/week, have significantly higher coronary artery calcification scores than controls (PMID: 28465287; PMID: 28450347)
Jul 7 • 6 tweets • 3 min read
You hear that you need to sleep 7-8 hours, but the majority of studies indicate that 7 hours per night is associated with the lowest mortality risk
In fact, 8 hours per night is often associated with a higher risk than 6 hours per night
Full video about how much sleep you need:
PMID: 26900147
Last week, I posted that the Japanese, on average, sleep 5.9 hours a night, but they're the 2nd longest living people in the world (85.27 years)
This is probably due to their very healthy lifestyle and low obesity rates
Jul 6 • 5 tweets • 3 min read
Microplastics have been found to accumulate in the brain and other organs, and the amount has increased since 2016 (PMID: 38765967)
That's because microplastics are everywhere -in the water, food, and even the air
Besides swapping for plastic-free products, there are some ways to reduce them:
First, how do the microplastics get into the brain given the brain is protected by the blood-brain barrier?
1. Nanoplastics from the blood infiltrate the blood-brain barrier (PMID: 37110989) 2. Through the olfactory bulb (PMID: 39283733)
So, the way to reduce the buildup of microplastics in the brain is to remove them from the blood
Jun 7 • 5 tweets • 3 min read
The soleus muscle underneath the calves is called the second heart because it helps with blood circulation back up to the heart
A 2022 study also found that stimulating the soleus can have significant benefits on your glucose metabolism⬇️⬇️
Blood flow from the feet back up is difficult because it has to fight against gravity
The soleus muscle helps to return deoxygenated blood back to the heart and prevents it from pooling in the legs
That's one of the reasons why sitting or standing for too long can be harmful
May 11 • 9 tweets • 3 min read
Just took 183 bloodmarkers and all came back green
Bookmark this to see optimal ranges for the major bloodmarkers below⬇️⬇️
Glucose and insulin markers
Growth hormone and IGF-1 during developmental years affect body size, but also longevity
You can see it in genetic conditions of excessive growth hormone production - Andre the Giant
As well as insufficient IGF-1 production - Laron's syndrome
Andre the Giant had acromegaly - excessive growth hormone and IGF-1 production, resulting in massive growth
Acromegaly is associated with a higher risk of cancer, heart disease, and overall mortality (PMID: 30197531)
People with acromegaly have a 2-fold higher mortality risk compared to the general population
Andre died at 46, but he also drank a lot of alcohol. Regardless, acromegaly is thought to be the reason he died so young
Feb 23 • 10 tweets • 3 min read
1. Physical fitness is the single best predictor of life expectancy and healthspan. No increased risk was observed with extreme fitness (PMID: 35926933)
8 other key insights on training strategies for optimizing lifespan and cardiovascular health⬇️⬇️
From a 2023 review (PMID: 37091937)2. Both moderate physical activity (MPA) and vigorous physical activity (VPA) are associated with reduced cardiovascular and all-cause mortality (PMID: 35876019)
More is better for moderate-intensity exercise with respect to cardiovascular health and life expectancy.
Vigorous exercise is also beneficial for optimizing life expectancy and healthspan, but maximal benefits are achieved at 150 minutes/week.
Feb 18 • 8 tweets • 4 min read
Thiamine deficiency causes rapid insulin resistance and prediabetic symptoms.
Without thiamine, you're on the road to getting type 2 diabetes
Check out this thread to learn how to optimize your thiamine intake to improve resistance and blood sugar levels⬇️⬇️
What happens if you don't get thiamine
In 1939, four young healthy 21-29-year-old women were put on a thiamine-deficient diet (< 0.1 mg per day)(Williams et al 1939).
They all saw progressive impairment in glucose tolerance.
Injecting 1 mg of thiamine chloride subcutaneously for 4 days reversed that phenomenon.
Another 1940 study, on six healthy white women aged 21 to 46 saw that a low thiamine intake of 0.15 mg/day or less also caused diabetic blood sugar curves (Williams 1940).
In this case, as well, thiamine injections at doses of 1 mg reversed these symptoms
Some conclusions from the authors of the studies:
1. thiamine deficiency in as little as 15 days, but especially after 2-3 months, leads to impaired carbohydrate tolerance
2. thiamine supplementation improves glucose tolerance in those who are deficient
3. symptoms of thiamine deficiency are vague (lack of appetite and fatigue)
4. electrocardiogram changes can occur with thiamine deficiency
Feb 8 • 10 tweets • 4 min read
Exercise is known to be good for us, but how much exercise and is there something like too much exercise?
Exercise is often seen to have a J-shaped curve with mortality risk - not enough is bad but too much is also harmful (PMID: 26187713)
How much is optimal then?⬇️⬇️
The guidelines recommend adults get 150-300 min/week of moderate exercise or 75-150 min/week of vigorous exercise
Meeting that vs not is linked to a 36% lower odds of being overweight and 48% lower odds of being obese (PMID: 37773071)
However, exercising more than that is linked to a reduced risk of mortality
Jan 27 • 7 tweets • 4 min read
Regular exercise reduces the likelihood of plaque accumulation in the arteries
However, many long-term exercisers appear to have coronary artery calcification, indicating atherosclerosis progression
The fascinating thing is that despite the higher plaque, those people still have lower rates of cardiovascular disease events and mortality
Graph: academic.oup.com/eurheartj/adva…
Middle-aged and older athletes, especially those who exercise for over 2000 MET-min/week, have significantly higher coronary artery calcification scores than controls (PMID: 28465287; PMID: 28450347)
Jan 8 • 15 tweets • 5 min read
Chronically high phosphate intake nukes your kidneys:
- faster decline in kidney function
- heart disease
- higher risk of mortality
In both healthy people and kidney disease patients (PMID: 35511366)
How to avoid⬇️⬇️
Higher phosphorus intake is associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease mortality even among people with normal kidney function (PMID: 24225358)
Jan 3 • 7 tweets • 4 min read
Taurine has become one of the most popular longevity supplements
It mostly started after a study from last year that found that taurine supplementation extended the lifespan of mice by up to 25%
Here's everything you need to know about taurine⬇️⬇️
You do see that taurine levels decrease with age in mice, monkeys, and humans as well
Taurine deficiency is associated with many age-related health problems and poor health like diabetes, liver disease, hypertension, and obesity.
Dec 12, 2024 • 14 tweets • 4 min read
Potassium is the most abundant intracellular cation that helps to maintain intracellular fluid volume.
Without potassium, you'll greatly increase your risk of hypertension, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and stroke
What you need to know about potassium⬇️⬇️
The concentration of potassium in the cell is 30x higher than outside the cell
This difference is regulated by the sodium-potassium ATPase pump
Once activated, the Na-K-ATPase exchanges 2 extracellular potassium ions for 3 intracellular sodium ions
Nov 27, 2024 • 6 tweets • 4 min read
Microneedling is crazily effective for skin aging
The small needles cause microtrauma, triggering collagen synthesis and skin repair - up to 400% increase in collagen synthesis
Paper: mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/1…
In this study, microneedling + topical vitamin A and C resulted in 658% higher epidermal thickness compared to no treatment
Chromium is the mineral you didn't know you need more of:
- lower blood sugar and Hba1c
- lower cholesterol
- better insulin sensitivity
- better body composition
Deficient chromium can promote insulin resistance and dyslipidemia
Here's how to get your chromium (THREAD⬇️⬇️)
In 1959, a novel protein was discovered in Brewer’s yeast that was termed ‘glucose tolerance factor’ (GTF)
GTF's main component was identified to be trivalent chromium
GTF enhances insulin action, thus lowering blood sugar. Chromium is needed for insulin to bind to the cell
Nov 21, 2024 • 6 tweets • 3 min read
Alpha-Ketoglutarate (AKG) is a key metabolite in producing energy
AKG has been seen to extend lifespan and healthspan in mice (PMID: 32877690)
Here's what you need to know about AKG⬇️⬇️
AKG is involved in the metabolism, specifically the Krebs cycle that generates energy (PMID: 32877686)
AKG levels decline with age and AKG regulates certain hallmarks of aging, such as mitochondrial function, genomic stability, and stem cell pluripotency (PMID: 36934991)
Nov 19, 2024 • 18 tweets • 5 min read
NAD depletion promotes many age-related diseases
Aging is a common reason for declining NAD levels, but it's not the root cause
Here's a thread on the things that deplete your NAD pool⬇️⬇️
PMID: 33609766
CD38 is the main consumer of NAD and the primary reason NAD declines with age
CD38 is a glycoprotein that rises during inflammation
CD38 levels increase 2-3-fold during aging, which is paralleled by a decrease in NAD