Want to live long? Learn to live better | Kim Boyd, MD | TEDxBoulder

Summary

The speaker reflects on their lifelong focus on health and performance, from childhood gymnastics to leading healthcare startups. Despite extensive training and education, they reveal that none of these experiences taught them how to be truly healthy. They discuss the importance of longevity, not just avoiding death, but living well. Highlighting the importance of lifestyle factors like exercise, nutrition, and relationships, they argue for a broader approach to health, blending science with emotional well-being. The speaker emphasizes the need for a shift in perspective to live a long, fulfilling life and balance metrics with joy.

Takeaways

• 😀 Early interest in health and performance: The speaker has been focused on health since childhood, driven by a passion for sports and optimizing their body.
• 😀 Education and career in healthcare: Despite excelling in medical school and healthcare startups, the speaker realized that these experiences did not teach them how to be truly healthy.
• 😀 The gap in healthcare focus: Traditional healthcare systems and medical education often prioritize disease treatment over maintaining overall health, leaving gaps in knowledge about lifestyle factors that impact longevity.
• 😀 Health span vs. lifespan: While the average lifespan in the U.S. is 78 years, health span (the years spent in good health) often ends 10 to 15 years earlier, usually in the 60s.
• 😀 Importance of lifestyle: Over 60% of longevity comes from lifestyle choices, such as exercise, sleep, nutrition, and managing emotional and social relationships.
• 😀 The emerging perspective on longevity: New scientific advancements in metabolic health, longevity research, and lifestyle protocols are providing promising ways to enhance long-term health.
• 😀 Longevity is not just about avoiding death: The goal should be to live a vibrant life, focusing on energy, mental clarity, and emotional well-being, not just preventing disease.
• 😀 The role of relationships and emotional health: Strong relationships and emotional well-being significantly contribute to overall health, as loneliness can be as detrimental as smoking 15 cigarettes a day.
• 😀 The risk of perfectionism in longevity: The pursuit of perfect health metrics and lifestyle choices can cause stress and detract from the joy of life, which also impacts well-being.
• 😀 Balance between metrics and joy: It’s important to prioritize curiosity, connection, and joy in life rather than being driven solely by fear or control, as this can influence health and gene expression.
• 😀 Aging with a positive mindset: Societies with a positive view of aging tend to have longer lifespans. Embracing aging with peace and joy can contribute to both longevity and quality of life.

Q & A

What sparked the speaker's interest in health and performance?

The speaker's interest in health and performance began at a young age, with a personal experience of breaking a bone at four. They were more intrigued by the X-ray than the lollipop they received afterward.

How did the speaker's athletic career evolve during their childhood and teenage years?

By age 10, the speaker made the US national gymnastics team. By high school, they were training 40 hours a week, with their life focused on sport and optimizing their body.

What contradiction does the speaker highlight about their medical education?

Although the speaker was top of their class at Stanford and medical school, they point out that the education focused heavily on disease but did not adequately address health, wellness, or what keeps people healthy.

What is the problem with the approach taken by the healthcare and longevity movements, according to the speaker?

The speaker argues that both the healthcare system and the emerging longevity movement focus too much on not dying, rather than living a fulfilling, healthy life. They emphasize that it's not enough to simply avoid death; we need to live well.

What does the speaker suggest is the most important factor for longevity?

The speaker emphasizes that while genetics and medical care play a role in longevity, the most significant factor is lifestyle—how we live, including factors like nutrition, sleep, exercise, and managing emotional and social relationships.

How does the speaker address the issue of medical education's focus on exercise?

The speaker highlights that despite exercise being one of the most powerful interventions for both disease prevention and improving quality of life, medical education spends only 4 to 10 hours on this topic out of over 7,000 hours spent on disease.

What new developments in health and longevity does the speaker mention?

The speaker mentions advances in health and longevity, including new tests to dive deeper into biomarkers, medications like GLP-1s (such as Ozempic), and the growing focus on lifestyle interventions like nutrition, sleep, and exercise.

What caution does the speaker offer regarding the longevity movement?

The speaker cautions that the longevity movement can sometimes be misleading, with certain trends or fads lacking scientific backing. They warn against the mindset of zero-sum competition in longevity, where people feel they're either doing everything right or falling behind.

What role do emotions and relationships play in health, according to the speaker?

The speaker underscores the importance of emotional health and relationships for longevity. They highlight research showing that loneliness can have a health risk comparable to smoking 15 cigarettes a day and emphasize that strong relationships are a key factor in predicting health at older ages.

How does the speaker suggest we approach the journey to health and longevity?

The speaker advises that while focusing on metrics like cholesterol and insulin is important, we should also consider the motivations behind our actions—whether driven by fear, ambition, or curiosity. They also stress the importance of enjoying life and living with intention, not just focusing on perfecting every health metric.