Improve Vitality, Emotional & Physical Health & Lifespan | Dr. Peter Attia

(instrumental music) Welcome to the Huberman Lab Podcast, where we discuss science and science-based tools for everyday life. I'm Andrew Huberman, and I'm a professor of neurobiology and ophthalmology at Stanford School of Medicine. Today my guest is Dr. Peter Attia, his second time on the podcast. Dr. Peter Attia is a medical doctor who did his training at Stanford School of Medicine, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, and the National Institutes of Health. He is a world expert in all things related to healthspan, vitality, and longevity. In this episode, we focused on many topics, focusing mainly, however, on healthspan and longevity and mental health. Healthspan and longevity, of course, relate to how long one lives, and Dr. Attia goes systematically through the seven major causes of death worldwide, beginning with cardiovascular disease and cerebrovascular disease, also cancer, also accident-related deaths, dementia, deaths of despair, and in every case, explains the three or four major levers that one can employ in order to offset, that is to prevent, those major causes of death. What follows is an incredibly informative and actionable set of tools for anyone, male, female, young or old. He explains the behavioral, nutritional, supplementation-based, and prescription drug based approaches that one can use in order to extend healthspan and longevity. Dr. Attia explains the key tests and markers that we should all pay attention to if our goal is to extend our healthspan and how to do so while maximizing our vitality. This is something that not a lot of people think about when they think about healthspan and longevity, but as Dr. Attia illustrates for us, emotional health has everything to do with our physical health and vice versa, and he shares quite openly about his own experiences in pursuing ways to improve emotional health and thereby healthspan, lifespan, and vitality. Dr. Attia is quite open about his own experiences exploring different practices to improve emotional health as ways not just to improve healthspan, longevity, and vitality, but of course also to derive the most meaning and satisfaction from life. Throughout today's discussion, we also discussed Dr. Attia's newly released book, which is entitled Outlive: The Science and Art of Longevity. This is a phenomenal book. I've read it cover to cover now three times. I have extensive notes written throughout, and the book, of course, focuses on longevity and healthspan and also has an extensive section on emotional health. It gets quite detailed into Dr. Attia's personal experiences with emotional health and tools to improve emotional health that are very actionable for anybody to use. I think the best way for me to summarize my feelings about the book would simply be to read the back jacket quote, which I provided. So I read, quote, "Finally, there is a modern, thorough, clear, and actionable manual for how to maximize our immediate and long-term health. Firmly grounded in data and real-life conditions, this is the most accurate and comprehensive health guide published to date. Outlive is not just informative, it is important." And indeed, Outlive is an important book, as is the discussion that Dr. Attia so graciously provided us in today's episode. Outlive is released on March 28th, 2023, and is available for pre-order prior to that date. You can find a link to where it's sold in the show note captions. Before we begin, I'd like to emphasize that this podcast is separate from my teaching and research roles at Stanford. It is, however, part of my desire and effort to bring zero cost to consumer information about science and science-related tools to the general public. In keeping with that theme, I'd like to thank the sponsors of today's podcast. Our first sponsor is Eight Sleep. Eight Sleep makes smart mattress covers with cooling, heating, and sleep tracking capacity. As I've talked about before on the Huberman Lab Podcast, there is a critical relationship between sleep and body temperature. That is, in order to fall asleep and stay deeply asleep, your body temperature needs to drop by about one to three degrees, and in order to wake up in the morning and feel alert, your body temperature needs to increase by about one to three degrees. The problem with most people's sleeping environment is that even if you make the room cool, the actual environment that you sleep on, that is your mattress and underneath your covers, is hard to regulate in terms of temperature. With Eight Sleep, regulating the temperature of that sleeping environment becomes incredibly easy. In fact, you can change the temperature of that environment across the night, making it a little bit cool at the beginning of the night, even cooler still a few hours into your sleep, which really helps getting into very deep sleep, and then warming it as you approach morning so that you wake up feeling most alert. I've been sleeping on an Eight Sleep mattress cover for over a year now, and it has completely transformed my sleep. If you'd like to try Eight Sleep, you can go to eightsleep.com/huberman to save up to $150 off their Pod 3 cover. Eight Sleep currently ships in the USA, Canada, UK, select countries in the EU, and Australia. Again, that's eightsleep.com/huberman. Today's episode is also brought to us by LMNT. LMNT is an electrolyte drink that has everything you need and nothing you don't. That means plenty of salt, magnesium, and potassium, and no sugar. The electrolytes, salt, magnesium, and potassium, are critical for the function of all cells, in particular neurons or nerve cells, and of course, proper hydration is critical for mental functioning and physical performance. To ensure that I stay hydrated, I consume one packet of LMNT in approximately 20 to 30 ounces of water every morning when I first wake up, and I will also consume one LMNT packet in about the same amount of water when I exercise or when I'm doing any kind of mental work, you know, preparing for a podcast, writing grants, working on papers, and so forth. I find that allows me to maintain my focus and physical performance at levels that I just simply can't otherwise. If you'd like to try LMNT, you can go to drinklmnt, that's lmnt.com/huberman, to claim a free LMNT sample pack with your purchase. Again, that's drinklmnt, lmnt.com/huberman.Today's episode is also brought to us by HVMN Ketone IQ. HVMN Ketone IQ is a supplement that increases blood ketones. I want to be clear that I am not following a ketogenic diet. Most people fall into this category, they are not following a ketogenic diet, they are omnivores and they do eat carbohydrates, so their standard fuel source for the brain and body is not ketones. However, I found that by taking Ketone IQ, which we know increases blood ketones, I can achieve much better focus for longer periods of time, for any kind of cognitive work, and much greater energy levels for exercise, especially if I'm going into that exercise fasted and find myself a little bit hungry when I start that exercise. And this is no surprise. We know that ketones are the brain's and body's preferred fuel source, even if you're not following a ketogenic diet. So, in other words, I and many other people are now starting to leverage endogenous ketones as a fuel source for the brain and body, and yet we are not following a ketogenic diet. And, of course, if you are fo- following a ketogenic diet, Ketone IQ will further allow you to increase your blood ketones as a source of brain and body fuel. If you'd like to try Ketone IQ, you can go to HVMN.com/huberman to save 20% off your order. Again, that's HVMN.com/huberman. The Huberman Lab Podcast is now partnered with Momentous Supplements. To find the supplements we discuss on the Huberman Lab Podcast, you can go to Live Momentous, spelled O-U-S, livemomentous.com/huberman. And I should just mention that the library of those supplements is constantly expanding. Again, that's livemomentous.com/huberman. And now for my discussion with Dr. Peter Attia. Dr. Attia, Peter, welcome back.