Biohacking Weekly: A Secret to a Long and Healthy Life, Physical Activity and Cardiovascular Health, Ben Greenfield, Insulin Resistance Linked to Depression, Vitamin D Supplementation During CV19

In this post:

1. A 97 year old's secret to a long and healthy life.
2. Maintaining physical activity significantly reduces risk of cardiovascular disease.
3. Ben Greenfield: does this biohacker live the perfect life?
4. Insulin Resistance doubles risk of depression.
5. CV19 mortality risk correlates inversely with vitamin D3 status, and a mortality rate close to zero could theoretically be achieved.
   
   

1. A 97 year old's secret to a long and healthy life

Ninety-seven-year old Colin Crampton’s secret for a long healthy life is not to hate and do a lot of walking.

“If you can avoid really hating somebody (do so), because gosh we are all made differently.

Read the Ashburton Courier Article

2. Maintaining physical activity significantly reduces risk of cardiovascular disease

An increase in frequency of moderate to vigorous physical activity per week was associated with a significant risk reduction of Cardiovascular Disease among those who were physically inactive.

A decrease in frequency of activities from being continuously physically active reduces the cardiovascular health benefits of physical activity.

Engaging in higher or consistent physical activity may help older adults prevent future risk for Cardiovascular Disease.

Source: European Heart Journal

Read more: How Exercise Can Improve Your Executive Functions

3. Ben Greenfield: Does this biohacker live the perfect life?

It’s not about your health. It’s about the health of other people, the physical, mental and spiritual health of all the people connected to you. Your own health is just a tool to that end.

You have to be healthy enough to be able to be there for others. Many people are cult-like about their health, performance, productivity and about how fit they are so they can look better and earn more money.

That’s egomaniacal, narcissistic and selfish. And crazily unsatisfying. It’s not about optimising yourself. It’s about being in good enough shape to be able to be there for others.

It is now crystal clear that it does your longevity the world of good to regularly leave your temperate comfort zone. Heat and cold are workouts for your cell health.

Get out into the open for 20 to 60 minutes a day and if you want to increase the effect, take something like methylene blue or chaga extract. Your body can then make more efficient use of the photons to produce electrons and ATP.

Image source: Instagram / @bengreenfieldfitness

Read the full Red Bull - Ben Greenfield Interview

4. Insulin resistance doubles risk of depression 

Image source: Researchgate.net

A 600 person study over 9 years, suggests that if you’re insulin-resistant, your risk of developing major depressive disorder is double that of someone who’s not insulin-resistant, even if you’ve never experienced depression before.

Individuals whose blood sugar levels climbed during the first two years of follow-up had a 2.7-fold greater risk of receiving a depression diagnosis. These individuals developed what’s known as prediabetes, when blood sugar levels are slightly above normal but not high enough for a diagnosis of type 2 diabetes. Insulin resistance is associated with both conditions.

Source: Psychiatry Online Article

An earlier clinical trial published in June 2020 in Neurotherapeutics tested the effectiveness of adding the diabetes drug metformin to antidepressant therapy for people with major depressive disorder who didn’t have diabetes. Depression went into remission for 81 percent of people who took both metformin and an antidepressant, compared with 46 percent of patients who took an antidepressant alone.

Metformin works by helping to restore the body's response to insulin. It decreases the amount of blood sugar that the liver produces and that the intestines or stomach absorb. (source)

5. CV-19 mortality risk correlates inversely with vitamin D3 status, and a mortality rate close to zero could theoretically be achieved at 50 ng/ml

Image source: BSEM

Evidence suggests that low D3 is a predictor rather than a side effect of the infection. Despite ongoing vaccinations, we recommend raising serum 25(OH)D levels to above 50 ng/ml to prevent or mitigate new outbreaks due to escape mutations or decreasing antibody activity.

For people with low vitamin D levels, a supplement may be required. Low vitamin D levels can be easily corrected but may take several months to improve. Vitamin D supplements are available as capsules, liquid or gummies.

Sun avoiders or people at risk of vitamin D deficiency (darker skin, elderly, overweight) should take at least 1,000 IU - 2,000 IU per day for maintenance.

Appropriate vitamin D dosage for COVID-19

• For anyone without COVID-19 risk factors and who does not have darker skin: 4,000 IU/day, with 10,000 IU/day for the first two weeks to bring blood levels up quickly.

• For anyone who is elderly, has COVID-19 risk factors or who has darker skin: 8,000 IU/day, with 15,000 IU/day for the first two weeks to bring blood levels up quickly. (Source)

Supplementing Vitamin D in combination with Vitamin K is best, since the two act synergistically for bone and cardiovascular health.

Active Vitamin D improves immune function, regulates calcium and phosphate, turns on hundreds of genes, suppresses inflammation, makes vitamin-K dependant proteins and enables them to work. Magnesium activates Vitamin D.

A low vitamin D level has been linked as one factor in various chronic pathological conditions such as cancer, coronary heart disease, neurological diseases, type II diabetes, autoimmune diseases, depression, with various inflammatory disorders, and with increased risk for all-cause mortality.

Health Risks of Hypovitaminosis D: A Review of New Molecular Insights