#357 ‒ A new era of longevity science: models of aging, human trials of rapamycin, biological clocks, promising compounds, and lifestyle interventions | Brian Kennedy, Ph.D.
Release Date: 07/21/2025
#377 ‒ Special episode: Understanding true happiness and the tools to cultivate a meaningful life—insights from past interviews with Arthur Brooks
The Peter Attia Drive
In this special episode of The Drive, Peter presents a curated “best of” conversation with bestselling author and previous guest Arthur Brooks, organized around four core themes: happiness itself, the forces that undermine it, the tools and practices that help cultivate it, and the courage required to live and love well. The episode brings together the most meaningful moments from two past interviews into a single, focused discussion that distills Brooks’ most insightful ideas and offers practical takeaways for building a life that's both successful and deeply happy. We discuss: ...
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#376 - AMA #78: Longevity interventions, exercise, diagnostic screening, and managing high apoB, hypertension, metabolic health, and more
The Peter Attia Drive
In this “Ask Me Anything” (AMA) episode, Peter tackles a wide-ranging set of listener questions spanning lifespan interventions, exercise, cardiovascular risk reduction, time-restricted eating, blood pressure management, hormone therapy, diagnostics, and more. Peter reveals the single most important lever for extending healthspan and lifespan, and explains how he motivates midlife patients using the Centenarian Decathlon framework. He discusses the importance of addressing high apoB and cholesterol even in metabolically healthy individuals with calcium scores of zero, how to manage high...
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#375 - Ketogenic diet, ketosis & hyperbaric oxygen: metabolic therapies for weight loss, cognition, Alzheimer’s & more | Dom D’Agostino, Ph.D.
The Peter Attia Drive
Dom D'Agostino is a neuroscientist and professor at the forefront of metabolic therapies, including ketogenic diets, exogenous ketones, and hyperbaric oxygen. In this episode, Dom breaks down nutritional versus supplemental ketosis, defines meaningful ketone thresholds, and outlines practical ways to achieve ketosis. He explains how a ketogenic diet can support metabolic health and weight loss, and advises on how to maintain adequate protein and avoid common mistakes. Dom surveys the growing landscape of exogenous ketones—from salts and esters to 1,3-butanediol—and effective pairings...
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#374 - The evolutionary biology of testosterone: how it shapes male development and sex-based behavioral differences, | Carole Hooven, Ph.D.
The Peter Attia Drive
Carole Hooven is a human evolutionary biologist whose research centers on testosterone, sex differences, and behavior. In this episode, she explores how prenatal testosterone orchestrates male development in the body and brain, how early hormonal surges shape lifelong behavioral tendencies, and what rare natural experiments—such as 5-alpha-reductase deficiency—reveal about the biology of sex differentiation. She discusses distinct male and female aggression styles through an evolutionary lens, how modern environments interact with ancient competitive drives, and the implications of...
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The impact of gratitude, serving others, embracing mortality, and living intentionally | Walter Green (#288 rebroadcast)
The Peter Attia Drive
Walter Green is a remarkable philanthropist, mentor, author of This Is the Moment!, and founder of the impactful “Say It Now” movement. In this episode, Walter delves into the unique insights gained from his challenging upbringing, discusses embracing mortality, and highlights the mindset of “finishing strong.” He shares insights on intentionality, thinking in reverse, saying “no,” prioritizing relationships, and the essence of focusing on others. The conversation focuses on the “Say It Now” movement, which stresses the importance of expressing sentiments to loved ones well...
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#373 – Thyroid function and hypothyroidism: why current diagnosis and treatment fall short for many, and how new approaches are transforming care | Antonio Bianco, M.D., Ph.D.
The Peter Attia Drive
Antonio Bianco is a world-renowned physician-scientist and expert in thyroid physiology and metabolism. In this episode, Antonio explores the complex biology of thyroid hormone production, conversion, and regulation—highlighting how deiodinase enzymes modulate hormone activity at the tissue level and why that matters for interpreting lab results. He discusses the shortcomings of relying solely on TSH as a marker of thyroid function, the ongoing debate around combination therapy with T3 and T4 versus standard T4 treatment, and how genetics, tissue sensitivity, and individual variability...
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#372 - AMA #77: Dietary fiber and health outcomes: real benefits, overhyped claims, and practical applications
The Peter Attia Drive
In this “Ask Me Anything” (AMA) episode, Peter breaks down the science of dietary fiber, moving beyond the blanket advice to “eat more fiber” to uncover what it actually does in the body and where its benefits are truly supported by evidence. He explains how different types of fiber—soluble, insoluble, viscous, and fermentable—affect digestion, satiety, weight management, and glycemic control, and compares their impact to other, more potent metabolic tools. Peter also examines how certain fibers influence lipid metabolism and cardiovascular risk, evaluates the strength of...
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#371 – Women’s sexual health: desire, arousal, and orgasms, navigating perimenopause, and enhancing satisfaction | Sally Greenwald, M.D., M.P.H.
The Peter Attia Drive
Sally Greenwald is an OB-GYN who specializes in women’s sexual health from a hormonal and physiologic perspective, with expertise spanning desire, arousal, pelvic floor function, contraception, and menopause care. In this episode, she explains why sexual health is a vital component of overall well-being, exploring topics such as the drivers of desire, the anatomy of sexual function, myths and realities around orgasm, and the role of hormones in perimenopause and menopause. She also covers vaginal and pelvic health, pain with sex, evidence-based therapies for low desire and arousal, how...
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Longevity 101: a foundational guide to Peter’s frameworks for longevity, and understanding CVD, cancer, neurodegenerative disease, nutrition, exercise, sleep, and more (re-broadcast)
The Peter Attia Drive
In this special episode, Peter provides a comprehensive introduction to longevity, perfect for newcomers or those looking to refresh their knowledge. He lays out the foundational concepts of lifespan, healthspan, and the marginal decade. Additionally, Peter discusses the four main causes of death and their prevention, as well as detailing the five key strategies in his longevity toolkit to improve lifespan and healthspan. Detailed show notes provide links for deeper exploration of these topics, making it an ideal starting point for anyone interested in understanding and improving their...
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#370 - AMA #76: Peter evaluates longevity drugs, aspirin for CVD, and strategies to improve muscle mass — proven, promising, fuzzy, noise, or nonsense?
The Peter Attia Drive
In this “Ask Me Anything” (AMA) episode, Peter revisits the “proven, promising, fuzzy, noise, nonsense” scale and applies it to a variety of popular topics. He begins with a refresher on what each category represents before classifying a range of interventions based on the strength of their supporting evidence. The conversation spans three main areas: drugs for geroprotection (including GLP-1 receptor agonists, SGLT2 inhibitors, methylene blue, and telomere-lengthening supplements), the use of low-dose aspirin for cardiovascular disease prevention, and strategies to improve muscle...
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Brian Kennedy is a renowned biologist, leader in aging research, and director of the Center for Healthy Longevity at the National University of Singapore. In this episode, Brian shares insights from ongoing human aging studies, including clinical trials of rapamycin and how dosing strategies, timing, and exercise may influence outcomes. He presents two key models of aging—one as a linear accumulation of biological decline and the other as an exponential rise in mortality risk—and explains why traditional models of aging fall short. He also explains why most current aging biomarkers lack clinical utility and describes how his team is working to develop a more actionable biological clock. Additional topics include the potential of compounds like alpha-ketoglutarate, urolithin A, and NAD boosters, along with how lifestyle interventions—such as VO2 max training, strength building, and the use of GLP-1 and SGLT2 drugs—may contribute to longer, healthier lives.
We discuss:
- Brian’s journey from the Buck Institute to Singapore, and the global evolution of aging research [2:45];
- Rethinking the biology of aging: why models like the hallmarks of aging fall short [9:45];
- How inflammation and mTOR signaling may play a central, causal role in aging [14:15];
- The biological role of mTOR in aging, and the potential of rapamycin to slow aging and enhance immune resilience [17:30];
- Aging as a linear decline in resilience overlaid with non-linear health fluctuations [22:30];
- Speculating on the future of longevity: slowing biological aging through noise reduction and reprogramming [33:30];
- Evaluating the role of the epigenome in aging, and the limits of methylation clocks [39:00];
- Balancing the quest for immortality with the urgent need to improve late-life healthspan [43:00];
- Comparing the big 4 chronic diseases: which are the most inevitable and modifiable? [47:15];
- Exploring potential benefits of rapamycin: how Brian is testing this and other interventions in humans [51:45];
- Testing alpha-ketoglutarate (AKG) for healthspan benefits in aging [1:01:45];
- Exploring urolithin A’s potential to enhance mitochondrial health, reduce frailty, and slow aging [1:05:30];
- The potential of sublingual NAD for longevity, and the combination of NAD and AKG for metabolic and exercise enhancement [1:09:00];
- Other interventions that may promote longevity: spermidine, 17𝛼-estradiol, HRT, and more [1:17:00];
- Biological aging clocks, clinical biomarkers, and a new path to proactive longevity care [1:23:15];
- Evaluating rapamycin, metformin, and GLP-1s for longevity in healthy individuals [1:32:15];
- Why muscle, strength, and fitness are the strongest predictors of healthspan [1:37:30];
- Why combining too many longevity interventions may backfire [1:39:30];
- How increased funding and AI integration could accelerate breakthroughs in aging research [1:41:45];
- The research Brian is most excited about, and the need to balance innovation with safety in longevity clinics [1:47:00];
- Peter’s reflections on emerging interventions and the promise of combining proven aging compounds [1:54:00]; and
- More.
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