Extend your health span now!

Extending the human lifespan is a long game. In coming years, new therapies will begin to arrive on the market to cure age-related diseases for which no treatment currently exists.

But you don’t need to wait years to extend your healthspan. Science has identified plenty of things we can do right now to lengthen our life and maximize its quality.

For the first time, that coordinated knowledge is available to the public via Everest Health Partners, a longevity medical practice.

Danielle Ruiz, the company’s CEO and medical director, has worked with the Foundation to develop the Methuselah Protocol, a series of safe and effective methods to help people become measurably younger, and maintain their youth and health longer. The Protocol was developed after poring over hundreds of thousands of research papers. It includes a variety of interventions and behaviors to enhance longevity, lower mortality, prevent diseases of aging, improve health outcomes and optimize health.

Here are five recommendations gleaned from the Protocol that you can start on today: 

  1. Know yourself. Most people get periodic physicals and standard lab tests, but Ruiz recommends more comprehensive testing. Extra blood panels can be done to check individuals’ insulin resistance, thyroid condition, hormone levels and other things. The additional information helps to determine a person’s biological age and provides better insight into their physical condition in order to optimize treatment.

  2. Be active. Most people shouldn’t tackle Olympic-style training regimens, but Ruiz recommends that everyone get active. She advises 30 minutes of low-to-moderate activity daily, supplemented by moderate weight lifting twice a week.

  3. Eat healthy. The rule of thumb is to eat more plant-based food and less animal-based food, though Ruiz warns that people over 60 may have a harder time absorbing plant protein. She is a fan of consuming foods of different colors, including fruits and vegetables, to achieve a healthy diet.

  4. Use supplements. Supplements, herbs and vitamins can provide nutrition most people should get through a balanced diet, but often do not for a variety of reasons. However, Ruiz cautions that the quantity you consume should be tailored to your individual needs. For example, the U.S. recommends the daily dose of vitamin D should be 800 IU. Ruiz said the optimal dose may be as high as 10,000 IU, depending on an individual’s age, gender, skin color and weight. Extra testing helps to determine optimal supplement ranges.

  5. Consider life-extension interventions. Science has identified plenty of effective ways to encourage tissue regeneration. For example, platelet-rich plasma injections accelerate the healing of injured tendons, ligaments, muscles and joints. Metformin, a diabetes drug, has been found to offer cardiovascular benefits, may reduce the risk of cancer and may actually slow aging and increase life expectancy. Studies have demonstrated the benefits of these and other interventions, though they remain off-label uses that require a health provider’s prescription.

Ruiz said the key to success is tailoring treatments to the specific needs and medical conditions of individual patients. However, she said embracing the Methuselah Protocol can help people feel 10 to 15 years younger.

For more Protocol-based tips, check out Ruiz’s Instagram page, livewelldani. To schedule an online consultation with Everest Health Partners, call 866-EVER-888 or email danielle@everest.bio. The first consultation is free.  Everest Health Partners does not accept health insurance.