Outlive: The Science and Art of Longevity: The Million-Copy Bestseller

by Peter Attia

The metabolic derangement that leads to type 2 diabetes also helps foster and promote heart disease, cancer, and Alzheimer’s disease. Addressing our metabolic health can lower the risk of each of the Horsemen. Almost all “diets” are similar: they may help some people but prove useless for most. Instead of arguing about diets, we will focus on nutritional biochemistry— how the combinations of nutrients that you eat affect your own metabolism and physiology, and how to use data and technology to come up with the best eating pattern for you. One macronutrient, in particular, demands more of our attention than most people realize: not carbs, not fat, but protein becomes critically important as we age. Exercise is by far the most potent longevity “drug.” No other intervention does nearly as much to prolong our lifespan and preserve our cognitive and physical function. But most people don’t do nearly enough—and exercising the wrong way can do as much harm as good. Finally, as I learned the hard way, striving for physical health and longevity is meaningless if we ignore our emotional health. Emotional suffering can decimate our health on all fronts, and it must be addressed.