Lifespan vs. Healthspan

There is a debate in the biohacking world about longevity. Sure, most people want to live as long as possible, but what if you extend your life for ten years and that period is a slow decline? Wouldn't you rather live a shorter life where you remained vital up until your end? Lifespan is how long you live. Healthspan is the quality of your life. Total wellbeing involves considering both.

The final keynote yesterday was delivered by the host, Dr. Anthony Balduzzi, and was part of one of his self-regeneration protocols. He started by discussing his philosophical principles, which he organized into three laws.

The Three Laws of Health Span

Law 1: Flow is life, stagnation is disease. 

In the body, here's what flows: blood, lymph, bile, cerebrospinal fluid, digestion, and the fluid moving in and out of a spinal disc. Everywhere flow stops, disease begins. Stagnant blood clots; stagnant bile forms stones. A disc that is never loaded starves. Inside your cells, energy is electrons in motion--stop the flow, and there is no life. In the mind, a held emotion is a stagnation too. This isn't a metaphor. It's a nervous system stuck in a defense posture.

Law 2: The right dose of stress creates adaptation (eustress).

Too little stress is decay; too much is damage. The dose is everything, and it is your job as the master of your own body to apply the right dose. Nothing that ever made you stronger was comfortable at the time.

Law 3: Repair happens in safety, with ample resources. 

No animal heals while it's being chased. During a stress response, blood shunts to your muscles, immunity stands down, digestion slows, and repair stops. When something is trying to kill you, the correct priority is the next ninety seconds, not the next ten years.

The opposite state is where healing actually happens. When you are relaxed and parasympathetic, blood flows freely to your organs and tissues. Digestion resumes, and you absorb the raw materials repair requires. Growth hormone is released. Your immune system shifts from emergency defense to surveillance and repair. Stem cells become active. Inflammation resolves instead of smoldering. Your mind is calm, and your cells receive the signal that it is safe to invest in the future. 

Today, we learn all the practical applications. I'm sure I'll generate many future newsletter topics.