The Optispan Podcast with Matt Kaeberlein Optispan

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Is bigger always better?

It depends. Throughout the human lifespan, body size plays an important role in determining health outcomes and quality of life. It's not just about body mass index, fat distribution, weight, or muscle mass: there also exists a relationship between body size and longevity across multiple species, including humans. On average, larger species seem to live longer and age more slowly—think about the fact that dogs age about seven times faster than do humans, who are both heavier and taller than dogs. But within species, that relationship flips around: larger individuals age more rapidly and live shorter lifespans than do smaller individuals.

As with seemingly everything in aging, the relationship between body size and the rate of aging is complex and the result of an interplay between genetic, environmental, and lifestyle factors, most of which scientists are still investigating. In this episode of Longevity Science, Matt dives into the nuances of body size and aging rate, discussing currently available data about how the two interact, intriguing outliers and exceptions, and potential molecular and evolutionary drivers.


Producers: Tara Mei, Nicholas Arapis
Video Editor: Jacob Keliikoa

DISCLAIMER: The information provided on the Optispan podcast is intended solely for general educational purposes and is not meant to be, nor should it be construed as, personalized medical advice. No doctor-patient relationship is established by your use of this channel. The information and materials presented are for informational purposes only and are not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. We strongly advise that you consult with a licensed healthcare professional for all matters concerning your health, especially before undertaking any changes based on content provided by this channel. The hosts and guests on this channel are not liable for any direct, indirect, or other damages or adverse effects that may arise from the application of the information discussed. Medical knowledge is constantly evolving; therefore, the information provided should be verified against current medical standards and practices.

More places to find us:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/optispanpodcast
Twitter: https://twitter.com/optispan
Twitter: https://twitter.com/mkaeberlein
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/optispan

https://www.optispan.life/

Hi, I'm Matt Kaeberlein. I spent the first few decades of my career doing scientific research into the biology of aging, trying to understand the finer details of how humans age in order to facilitate translational interventions that promote healthspan and improve quality of life. Now I want to take some of that knowledge out of the lab and into the hands of people who can really use it.

On this podcast I talk about all things aging and healthspan, from supplements and nutrition to the latest discoveries in longevity research. My goal is to lift the veil on the geroscience and longevity world and help you apply what we know to your own personal health trajectory. I care about quality science and will always be honest about what I don't know. I hope you'll find these episodes helpful!

Subscribe to our channel: https://www.youtube.com/@optispan

Resveratrol is a naturally occurring polyphenolic compound found in various plants, including in the skins of grapes, blueberries, raspberries, mulberries, and peanuts. Its association with red wine has contributed to the illusion of the "French Paradox": the observation that French people have a relatively low incidence of heart disease despite a diet rich in saturated fats. If you were alive in the 2000s, you may remember cheering at the news that drinking red wine would protect your heart and help you live longer.

Unfortunately, this claim is not true. Matt, who describes resveratrol as the "most debunked longevity molecule in history", spent several formative years of his scientific career in the depths of the resveratrol saga. Together with colleagues, and in parallel with other independent labs, he demonstrated that the apparent miracle powers of resveratrol were likely an artifact of the experimental methods used to test resveratrol-induced sirtuin activation, and that resveratrol actually had no significant lifespan-extending effects in vivo. In this episode, Matt presents a comprehensive analysis of the existing resveratrol literature, transports us to his earlier years of figuring the story out piece by piece with colleagues such as National University of Singapore Distinguished Professor of Biochemistry and Physiology Brian Kennedy, and shares his views on how bad science can have a profound influence on scientific fields, funding allocations, and public behaviour.



Producers: Tara Mei, Nicholas Arapis
Video Editor: Jacob Keliikoa

DISCLAIMER: The information provided on the Optispan podcast is intended solely for general educational purposes and is not meant to be, nor should it be construed as, personalized medical advice. No doctor-patient relationship is established by your use of this channel. The information and materials presented are for informational purposes only and are not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. We strongly advise that you consult with a licensed healthcare professional for all matters concerning your health, especially before undertaking any changes based on content provided by this channel. The hosts and guests on this channel are not liable for any direct, indirect, or other damages or adverse effects that may arise from the application of the information discussed. Medical knowledge is constantly evolving; therefore, the information provided should be verified against current medical standards and practices.

More places to find us:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/optispanpodcast
Twitter: https://twitter.com/optispan
Twitter: https://twitter.com/mkaeberlein
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/optispan

https://www.optispan.life/

Hi, I'm Matt Kaeberlein. I spent the first few decades of my career doing scientific research into the biology of aging, trying to understand the finer details of how humans age in order to facilitate translational interventions that promote healthspan and improve quality of life. Now I want to take some of that knowledge out of the lab and into the hands of people who can really use it.

On this podcast I talk about all things aging and healthspan, from supplements and nutrition to the latest discoveries in longevity research. My goal is to lift the veil on the geroscience and longevity world and help you apply what we know to your own personal health trajectory. I care about quality science and will always be honest about what I don't know. I hope you'll find these episodes helpful!

Subscribe to our channel: https://www.youtube.com/@optispan

The journey towards prioritizing one's healthspan can be a circuitous path full of triumphs, setbacks and lessons. Challenges arise and old habits rear their ugly heads. Unforeseen obstacles test our resolve. The road is rarely linear and often leads us to unexpected places.

In this episode, Matt chats with former Microsoft Chief Technology Officer and one of our first Optispan Trailblazers Stuart McKee about Stuart's early forays into drugs, smoking, and alcohol consumption, how he stepped off the train to get his health (and life) in order, and how the healthcare system can shape our attitude to healthspan optimization, for better or for worse. Stuart shares his meticulous approach to finding the right primary care doctor, strategies for weight loss from an obese baseline, and experiences with clomid therapy. They also discuss the influence of mindset and external influence on our healthspan optimization trajectories.

Stuart is currently a Strategic Advisor to the software company Armada, where he collaborates with the executive team to identify opportunities, innovative solutions, and market priorities to drive awareness and growth for the company. He also serves as a substitute teacher for Washington's Northshore School District. He was previously Chief Operating Officer at the artificial intelligence and spatial analytics company Hayden AI and Chief Executive Officer of Optispan Geroscience LLC, a precursor to Optispan as it exists today. Stuart spent 16 years at Microsoft.



Producers: Tara Mei, Nicholas Arapis
Video Editor: Jacob Keliikoa

DISCLAIMER: The information provided on the Optispan podcast is intended solely for general educational purposes and is not meant to be, nor should it be construed as, personalized medical advice. No doctor-patient relationship is established by your use of this channel. The information and materials presented are for informational purposes only and are not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. We strongly advise that you consult with a licensed healthcare professional for all matters concerning your health, especially before undertaking any changes based on content provided by this channel. The hosts and guests on this channel are not liable for any direct, indirect, or other damages or adverse effects that may arise from the application of the information discussed. Medical knowledge is constantly evolving; therefore, the information provided should be verified against current medical standards and practices.

More places to find us:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/optispanpodcast
Twitter: https://twitter.com/optispan
Twitter: https://twitter.com/mkaeberlein
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/optispan

https://www.optispan.life/

Hi, I'm Matt Kaeberlein. I spent the first few decades of my career doing scientific research into the biology of aging, trying to understand the finer details of how humans age in order to facilitate translational interventions that promote healthspan and improve quality of life. Now I want to take some of that knowledge out of the lab and into the hands of people who can really use it.

On this podcast I talk about all things aging and healthspan, from supplements and nutrition to the latest discoveries in longevity research. My goal is to lift the veil on the geroscience and longevity world and help you apply what we know to your own personal health trajectory. I care about quality science and will always be honest about what I don't know. I hope you'll find these episodes helpful!

Subscribe to our channel: https://www.youtube.com/@optispan

Related episodes:

The R-Files episode 1: https://youtu.be/czx_-DqnnrQ
The R-Files episode 2: https://youtu.be/EgIy0ghrDmo
The R-Files episode 3: https://youtu.be/jLV5nOenD-g
The R-Files episode 4: https://youtu.be/6AjKOe-yZeM
Matt Kaeberlein's ALLERGIC REACTION to Medication While on Rapamycin: https://youtu.be/6vIVj4SaBx4
Are DEXA scans ACCURATE? What YOU NEED to KNOW: https://youtu.be/SsDJZMlM1ko
The Importance of Body Composition & Ways YOU can measure it: https://youtu.be/gM3aYTMsqNI

The R-Files is a series of episodes about rapamycin, a naturally occurring compound originally discovered in soil samples from Easter Island, also known as Rapa Nui (hence the drug's name). Rapamycin belongs to a class of drugs called macrolides and has potent immunosuppressive and anti-proliferative effects. The drug has garnered attention for its potential anti-aging properties and has attracted research interest for its ability to extend lifespan and delay age-related diseases in various model organisms, including yeast and mice.

In our fifth episode of the R-Files, Matt shares insights from his recent course of off-label rapamycin use, which he started in January 2024 and plans to continue for at least the next month or two. He describes improvements in joint pain and body fat loss as well as an unexpected bacterial infection, and speculates about whether rapamycin may have contributed to any of these effects. He also discusses rapamycin's half-life in his blood, which is significantly lower than that reported in the published literature.


Producers: Tara Mei, Nicholas Arapis
Video Editor: Jacob Keliikoa

DISCLAIMER: The information provided on the Optispan YouTube channel is intended solely for general educational purposes and is not meant to be, nor should it be construed as, personalized medical advice. No doctor-patient relationship is established by your use of this channel. The information and materials presented are for informational purposes only and are not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. We strongly advise that you consult with a licensed healthcare professional for all matters concerning your health, especially before undertaking any changes based on content provided by this channel. The hosts and guests on this channel are not liable for any direct, indirect, or other damages or adverse effects that may arise from the application of the information discussed. Medical knowledge is constantly evolving; therefore, the information provided should be verified against current medical standards and practices.

More places to find us:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/optispanpodcast
Twitter: https://twitter.com/optispan
Twitter: https://twitter.com/mkaeberlein
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/optispan

https://www.optispan.life/

Hi, I'm Matt Kaeberlein. I spent the first few decades of my career doing scientific research into the biology of aging, trying to understand the finer details of how humans age in order to facilitate translational interventions that promote healthspan and improve quality of life. Now I want to take some of that knowledge out of the lab and into the hands of people who can really use it.

On this channel I talk about all things aging and healthspan, from supplements and nutrition to the latest discoveries in longevity research. My goal is to lift the veil on the geroscience and longevity world and help you apply what we know to your own personal health trajectory. I care about quality science and will always be honest about what I don't know. I hope you'll find these videos helpful!

Subscribe to our channel: https://www.youtube.com/@optispan

Matt recently exchanged a lively correspondence about biological age with Harold Katcher, cofounder of a stealth biotechnology company and inventor of E5. E5 is a compound consisting of the purified exosome fraction of blood from young piglets—in other words, young pig blood. Harold recently co-published a paper suggesting that injecting this young pig blood into rats made rats younger on several biological aging measures, including inflammatory markers and epigenetic aging signatures. Indeed, Harold has injected E5 into his own right hand and presented differences in the appearance of his right and left hands on social media.

Putting pig blood into other animals (and into ourselves!) to reverse biological age might seem like a crazy thing to do. But this idea actually stems from a methodology with a decades-long history called heterochronic parabiosis, an area of research that explores the effects of joining the circulatory systems of different-aged organisms. In this experimental technique, researchers surgically connect two animals, typically mice, of disparate ages so that they share a common bloodstream. This union leads the older and younger individuals to exchange not just blood cells but also signaling molecules, growth factors, and other circulating factors. Remarkably, when an older animal is paired with a younger counterpart, it often experiences improvements in various aspects of health and tissue function, while the younger partner may exhibit corresponding signs of accelerated aging. The mechanisms underlying these effects are complex, multifaceted, and very much still under investigation.

In this episode, Matt takes a magnifying glass to E5: what we know about the compound, how it affects lifespan, and how its impact on lifespan stacks up with that of other longevity inventions such as caloric restriction and rapamycin. He discusses whether Harold's recent paper truly proves a reversal of biological age and where his findings fit into the larger body of literature in the field. He also gives us a window into the methodology of heterochronic parabiosis, what the primary data about life expectancy gains through this intervention show, and whether heterochronic parabiosis-inspired interventions such as E5 are realistic approaches to human lifespan extension.



Producers: Tara Mei, Nicholas Arapis
Video Editor: Jacob Keliikoa

DISCLAIMER: The information provided on the Optispan YouTube channel is intended solely for general educational purposes and is not meant to be, nor should it be construed as, personalized medical advice. No doctor-patient relationship is established by your use of this channel. The information and materials presented are for informational purposes only and are not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. We strongly advise that you consult with a licensed healthcare professional for all matters concerning your health, especially before undertaking any changes based on content provided by this channel. The hosts and guests on this channel are not liable for any direct, indirect, or other damages or adverse effects that may arise from the application of the information discussed. Medical knowledge is constantly evolving; therefore, the information provided should be verified against current medical standards and practices.

More places to find us:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/optispanpodcast
Twitter: https://twitter.com/optispan
Twitter: https://twitter.com/mkaeberlein
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/optispan

https://www.optispan.life/