I’m in the process of trying to drop a total of 24 lbs (ten down already!), and in doing so I’ve changed my diet and exercise regimen for the better. Plus, my doc has me on a fiber supplement. My whole goal here was to eliminate any need for statins altogether, because I wasn’t sure if they would interact badly with my mood stabilizer (oxcarbazepine). But actually, it seems they’re not too bad together: https://online.epocrates.com/u/10a2284/oxcarbazepine — and I did find one source that suggests (right at the end) they might even play well together– http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_hb4365/is_/ai_n29173328 — So, the prognosis looks encouraging, whatever the outcome!

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18575296?ordinalpos=17&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_DefaultReportPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum

In patients with high LDL cholesterol levels, diet usually can only lower it by a small percentage. Weight loss and diet are the first steps, but statins are frequently needed to make a real difference.

Eggs have gotten a bad rap. They are an excellent, inexpensive source of protein.

Wha, waitaminute– what’s this? I can haz eggs?

My internist said I could only have egg whites, because of my high LDL. If that information is outdated, I’d love to see the more recent research, so I can discuss with him further my pitiful lusting after egg yolks!

Fortunately I work for myself (even if I must climb trees and negotiate to get bananas) but if I didn’t I’d be asking for more tire swings for my cubicle to compensate for having to dodge the poo being flung!

[with apologies to The Graduate]

Even if Ray manages to avoid coronary artery disease, small-vessel disease, cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, etc., he still has to face the fact that most of his tissues have “switched off” the enzyme that prevents their telomeres from shortening with every cycle of cell division.

Eventually, after enough cell divisions, the telomeres will be gone and the coding regions of the chromosomes will start to erode, leading to either cell death or malignant transformation.

Switching the telomerase back on is not without its problems, either. A feature of numerous cancers is that their telomerase (which was supposed to be off) has been switched on. Turning off the telomerase appears to be a backup safeguard to prevent out-of-control cell replication which could lead to cancer.

There have been a lot of studies in mice, fruit flies and other animals that show some promise in extending the lifespan of humans. However, there hasn’t yet been any solid explanation why humans live so much longer than other primates of similar size.

In captivity, chimpanzees and gorillas live – at most – into their fifties. Their lives are even shorter in the wild, where disease, starvation and predation kill them much earlier.

Humans (in captivity – e.g. office workers in Manhattan) live an average of 70 – 75 years, with some “specimens” reaching well past 100 years. (Those who argue that humans don’t live in captivity should look around their cubicles and ask themselves if they might not live longer – or at least happier – in a zoo-like setting.)

Before we start thinking that we can extend our lives, perhaps we ought to understand why we already live longer than we should expect.

Prometheus

http://www.amazon.com/Chasing-Life-Discoveries-Search-Immortality/dp/0446698180/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1232505578&sr=1-1

What? Is that a medical opinion? What scientific evidence is it based on?

“Ecstasy, along with Rohypnol and Ketamine, belong to a group known as date rape drugs. They are colorless, odorless and tasteless, which allows them to be slipped into a victim’s drink. They can cause a victim to pass out, unable to resist what is being done to them, and leaving them unable to recall what happened to them. Chronic use of these drugs can cause changes in brain function, coma and seizures. Ecstasy can interfere with the body’s ability to regulate one’s temperature, causing severe temperature elevations and organ damage. These drugs, used mostly by teens and young adults who are part of a nightclub, bar, rave, or trance scene, can be deadly.”

I can tell you that Ecstasy is not tasteless, in fact it has a very strong bitter taste and would be easily detectable if slipped into a drink. Second, it doesn’t cause victims to pass out. In fact, MDMA is an amphetamine derivative and has stimulant properties.

These authors willy-nilly grouped Ecstasy with rohypnol (a benzo) and ketamine (an anesthetic). They do not go together, chemically or physiologically.

I see virtually all of the “symptoms” he aims to eliminate by SENS as being “features” of physiology, not pathology per se. For example, I see the accumulation of undegraded protein aggregates (as in Alzheimer’s, Lewy body neuropathies and amyloidosis) as the consequence of the activation of ATP conserving mechanisms, not because they are somehow not degradable by existing lytic enzymes (which he proposes to fix by genetic engineering even more powerful lytic enzymes into humans). This is simply wrong thinking. If those compounds were not degradable, they would accumulate at every age and in every individual not just at old age and not just in some individuals.

The linked to book is pretty good.

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=8iYpxRXlboQ

Claims to be entirely science-based, but takes the view that research on longevity is both potentially fruitful and ethically responsible.

He seems to be a walking counter-example to your assertion that “… severe calorie restriction, is not practical or palatable and would make adequate nutrition difficult” (Although I’ll grant that his appearance makes me wonder about his nutrition levels).

If we do find a way to extend lifespan dramatically, imagine the enhanced sense of tragedy of that inconsiderate boob driving whilst on the cell phone that just hit you and wiped out 800 years of life expectancy. ;*)

An arbitrarily long life — I’m all for it — would be interesting to witness in terms of the unexpected consequences, whether quirky or dire.