Peter Attia on Lifespan, Healthspan, and Outlive

Econtalk

Key Takeaways 

• Peter Attia asks all of his patients, “What is your goal for the last decade of your life?”
• Even if exercise does not extend your life by a single day, it will enable you to move freely and be active in the final decade of your life 
• One of the fundamental problems with our current healthcare system is its relentless focus on lifespan to the exclusion of healthspan 
• While the current medical system is very effective at treating acute diseases and injuries, it has a massive blindspot with respect to the treatment of chronic diseases 
• If you are a non-smoker, these are the four things that kill us slowly (in order):
  • #1. Cardiovascular disease or the disease of atherosclerosis
  • #2. Cancer 
  • #3. Neurodegenerative diseases and diseases of dementia 
  • #4. Cluster of metabolic diseases  
• While the cluster of metabolic diseases (#4) does not directly kill, Peter Attia believes that it is the gasoline that is poured on the fire of all other diseases 
• “Up until about the eighth decade of life, genes play virtually no role.” – Peter Attia on the role that genes play with respect to longevity
• The Darwinian superpower of being able to store excess energy was great until we entered such an energy-dense environment (like we have today) 
• There is nothing metabolically magical about time-restricted feeding, more commonly referred to as “intermittent fasting”; all of the benefits derived from time-restricted feeding are through the direct effects of calorie restriction 
• There are only three strategies to reduce energy intake: 
  • #1. Directly (caloric restriction) 
  • #2. Time restriction (example: only consuming calories between 2 pm and 7 pm)
  • #3. Dietary restriction (pick a Boogeyman in the diet and remove it) 
• In his four years at Stanford Medical School, Peter received a total of one hour of training in nutrition, exercise, emotional health, and sleep
• “Exercise is far more potent at extending lifespan and improving healthspan than any medication.” – Peter Attia 

Read the full notes @ podcastnotes.org

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We spend too much of our health care focus on lifespan and not enough on healthspan--the quality of our life as we get older. So argues Dr. Peter Attia, author of Outlive: The Science and Art of Longevity. Attia speaks with EconTalk's Russ Roberts about what kills us, what slows us down as we age, and the weapons we have to allow us to live better and longer.