From the time I made the decision to explore the field of anti-aging, I have been preoccupied by two pressing questions:  What do we want from life and our eventual exodus from it?  What are we willing to do to prolong life?

I believe the answer to be both simple and extremely complex.  The simple answer is we are all driven to experience the future.  From a physician standpoint, we desire functional longevity and not just longevity.  Our goal is to prolong life in a way that the patient’s dignity may be preserved and so that dependency on any support system will be decreased.  These are worthy goals and depend upon increasing application of preventive medicine in health care.

Patients can follow broad guidelines that we find are shared by those individuals with functional longevity.  Three important ones are:

• Caloric restriction

• Low-impact exercise, both
  mental and physical
• Stress management

When thinking about longevity, we need to think about our cells.  I enjoy posing an important question: How does a cell know how old it is?  After all, a cell doesn’t use usual time pieces or carry a calendar.  In fact, a cell knows how old it is only by the nature of the fluid or milieu that bathes it.  This milieu is complex and comprised of many chemicals that include essential metals, minerals, anti-oxidants, hormones, vitamins, genes, antibodies and others.  Therefore, we can look forward to making a cell feel and function at a younger age by changing its milieu.

Physicians who practice functional longevity medicine must attempt to monitor and optimize these components, and likewise, they must be diligent in identifying anything that can impede or damage the delicate reactions upon which our chemical pathways depend.  Toxins and pollutants abound in our environment and high priority must be given to identify and remove them.  One way we accomplish this is through the use of a urine assay system.

We are blessed both to have witnessed and to be in the midst of a huge leap in medicine; very similar to the Manhattan Project for atoms.  The Manhattan Project basically elucidated the atom structure, following which many beneficial advances rapidly proceded.

Likewise, The Human Genome Project elucidated the basic organization of the gene, and we can expect application to likewise advance quickly.

Progress in understanding genes has been rapid.  We have knowledge of certain genes that mark individuals for disease risks such as certain cancers, eye disorders or abnormal clotting.  This is a tremendous advantage to our patients and allows us to predict certain disease risk and then to modify that risk.
Further advances in functional longevity will depend upon decreased DNA damage, increased DNA repair, telomer considerations, bioidentical hormone manipulation, prosthetic advancements, and knowledge of robotics.
Join us at Aesculapian Aesthetic Anti-Aging Institute and step into the future of medical care by adopting functional longevity.

James M. Holbert, Jr.,  M.D., Ph.D.(2), MBA, ABAAM, ABCMT, ABM, FACP, FACCP, FSCCM, FASCP, FASCO, FASH, FCAP, FRSH