PDF Summary:Super Human, by Dave Asprey

Most people believe that mental and physical deterioration go hand in hand with aging. They assume that, with every year that passes, they’ll look and feel older, suffer more aches and pains, and become more susceptible to debilitating diseases that nudge them closer to death.

Entrepreneur, Silicon Valley investor, and best-selling author Dave Asprey argues that you can grow older in years and extend your lifespan without suffering these ill effects. In Super Human, he draws on advancements in anti-aging science to explore ways to slow down and reverse the aging process, optimize your mental and physical health, and extend your lifespan.

This guide explores Asprey’s advice for improving your health now while ensuring you live a longer, healthier, and more youthful life in the future. Additionally, we’ll expand on each of his ideas with research, advice, and actionable ideas from health practitioners and longevity specialists.

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(Shortform note: It’s common knowledge that protein is essential for building and repairing tissues, muscles, and organs. However, you may be surprised by Asprey’s explanation that it creates waste. In fact, metabolizing it creates three different waste products that your body must excrete: urea, ammonia, and creatinine. When you eat the right amount of protein, your kidneys can easily process and eliminate these waste products through your urine. However, consuming excess protein can overload your kidneys—which then makes them less effective at excreting these waste products.)

Asprey recommends eating 0.5 grams of protein a day for every pound you weigh (reduce this figure down to 0.35 grams if you’re overweight). According to him, good sources of protein include wild fish, hemp, and products derived from grass-fed animals.

(Shortform note: There’s no consensus on how much protein we should consume. Some dieticians suggest that men should consume 56 grams a day while women should consume 46 grams. Others suggest that everyone should consume 0.8 grams per kilogram of body weight—but that those trying to build muscle mass should consume more. Meanwhile, a third group argues that you should pay more attention to the type of protein in your diet rather than the amount—for example, by reducing your consumption of red meat and increasing your consumption of salmon, yogurt, or beans and pulses.)

He also suggests that you supplement your daily protein intake with 20 grams of collagen powder to help maintain the connective tissue that supports your skin, teeth, bones, cartilage, and organs.

(Shortform note: Research suggests that taking collagen supplements may increase skin elasticity and hydration, relieve joint pain, prevent bone loss, boost muscle mass, and promote heart health. However, you’ll need to be patient: Researchers claim that it can take between eight weeks and 12 months of daily intake to experience noticeable results.)

Dietary Change #4: Metabolize Glucose and Ketones

The fourth dietary change for reducing inflammation is to metabolize glucose and ketones. Asprey explains that the energy mitochondria extract from your body’s metabolic processes takes one of two forms—glucose or ketones—depending on how much sugar there is in your bloodstream for your body to metabolize.

• When there’s sugar in your bloodstream, your body metabolizes it to produce glucose.
• When there isn’t any sugar in your bloodstream, your body metabolizes your stores of fat to produce ketones.

According to Asprey, mitochondria work more efficiently when they’re able to switch between extracting glucose and ketones to power your cells. Alternating between the two energy sources promotes the growth of new mitochondria while also providing existing mitochondria with the necessary raw materials to maintain cellular function.

Glucose Levels Impact Cellular Health

Research expands on why mitochondria work more efficiently when they have access to both glucose and ketones. While glucose is the primary source of energy for all cells, particularly those in the brain, there are a couple of downsides to relying on it as a sole source of energy. First, having too much glucose in the bloodstream can cause hyperglycemia, which damages nerves, blood vessels, and organs. Second, it provides less cellular energy than ketones: Metabolizing 100 grams of glucose generates 8.7 kilograms of energy-carrying molecules. Metabolizing 100 grams of ketones generates between 9.4 and 10.5 kilograms of energy-carrying molecules.

While it’s clear that ketones provide more cellular energy than glucose, relying on it as a sole source of energy would result in no glucose in the bloodstream—which would affect the central nervous system and cause cellular dysfunction or death. Therefore, as Asprey says, you’re more likely to keep your blood sugar levels stable and maintain cellular health when your body metabolizes both glucose and ketones.

Two Approaches for Producing Glucose and Ketones

Asprey recommends two dietary approaches that will adjust your blood sugar levels to produce both glucose and ketones: Restrict what you eat and restrict when you eat.

Restrict what you eat by following a ketogenic diet for five or six days a week. This involves avoiding carbohydrates (which release sugar into your bloodstream, thereby producing glucose) and eating foods high in fat (which won’t release sugar into your bloodstream, enabling your body to metabolize your stores of fat to produce ketones). Then, for one or two days a week, add 150 grams of low-sugar carbohydrates, which will release sugar into your bloodstream and help your body produce glucose.

(Shortform note: While this approach helps the body metabolize both glucose and ketones, nutritionists warn that you might find this way of eating more difficult than if you follow a ketogenic diet every day. They explain that, over time, following a ketogenic diet naturally suppresses your cravings for carbohydrates. However, reintroducing carbohydrates back into your body every week prevents you from fully adapting to living without them. This stimulates intense cravings that may tempt you to prolong your “days off,” and to give up on abstaining from carbohydrates for the rest of the week.)

Restrict when you eat by practicing intermittent fasting. This involves limiting your food intake to one six-to-eight-hour period each day, during which time the food you consume will raise your blood sugar levels and help your body produce glucose. Toward the end of every 16-to-18-hour fasting period, your blood sugar will be low enough to produce ketones.

(Shortform note: While Johns Hopkins Medicine supports the finding that intermittent fasting can help control blood sugar levels, they advise that the following people shouldn’t attempt it: anyone under the age of 18, people who are pregnant or breastfeeding, and those who suffer from metabolic or eating disorders. If you do intend to practice intermittent fasting, they recommend that you stay hydrated—by drinking water or other zero-calorie drinks (such as black tea or coffee) during your fasting periods.)

Factor 2: Imbalanced Gut Bacteria

The second cause of mitochondrial inefficiency is having imbalanced gut bacteria. Asprey explains that gut bacteria help maintain the integrity of your gut lining—the barrier between your digestive tract and bloodstream. Your gut lining plays a massive part in the health of your immune system because it absorbs necessary nutrients from your bloodstream and prevents toxins from your digestive tract from leaking into your bloodstream. However, when your gut bacteria are out of balance, your gut lining breaks down, fails to absorb nutrients, and leaks toxins into your bloodstream.

According to Asprey, various factors cause gut bacteria to become imbalanced, including eating produce derived from animals that have been fed antibiotics or from crops sprayed with insecticides, using antibiotics or antibacterial soaps, and consuming an insufficient amount of fiber.

Symptoms of Imbalanced Gut Bacteria

While Asprey details the causes and effects of imbalanced gut bacteria, he doesn’t include information on how you might determine whether this is an issue you’re dealing with. Physicians provide a list of symptoms to keep an eye out for:

• Autoimmune problems, such as thyroid issues, rheumatoid arthritis, or type 1 diabetes

• Digestive issues, such as irritable bowel syndrome, constipation, diarrhea, heartburn, or bloating

• Excessive sugar cravings

• Chronic fatigue or problems sleeping

• Skin irritations, such as rashes or allergies

• Mood disorders, such as depression or anxiety

• Unexplained weight fluctuations

Asprey suggests two methods for rebalancing gut bacteria: Add more fiber to your diet and reduce your exposure to antibacterial products and antibiotics. Let’s explore each of these methods in more detail.

Method #1: Add More Fiber to Your Diet

The first method for rebalancing your gut bacteria is to add more fiber to your diet. Asprey explains that fiber feeds your healthy bacteria (leading them to multiply) and provides the perfect environment for them to thrive. He suggests that you can maximize your production of healthy gut bacteria by eating lots of fibrous vegetables and consuming 10 to 30 grams of powdered fiber each day.

(Shortform note: Research validates Asprey’s claim that fiber feeds your healthy gut bacteria, leading them to multiply. However, while there’s no disputing the benefit of consuming more fiber, proceed with caution: Gradually introduce fibrous foods into your diet. Research reveals that dramatically increasing your daily intake can cause adverse side effects. These effects include bloating, abdominal pain, flatulence, diarrhea, constipation, and temporary weight gain. It can also create complications for people with Crohn’s disease or diabetes.)

Additionally, opting for organic foods will reduce your exposure to the damaging insecticides and antibiotics used in the production of processed foods.

(Shortform note: While organic foods are free from insecticides and antibiotics, they do have three disadvantages to consider before making a big change in the way you shop and eat. First, they require higher overhead costs to produce, which makes them more expensive than conventional produce. Second, they’re produced without artificial preservatives, which means they spoil quickly. Third, they’re not entirely free from contamination—for example, various studies show that organic foods play a part in foodborne disease outbreaks such as E. coli infection.)

Method #2: Reduce Your Exposure to Antibacterial Products and Antibiotics

Asprey suggests that, in addition to eating more fiber, you can stimulate the production of healthy gut bacteria by reducing your exposure to antibacterial products and replacing antibiotics with ozone therapy—a treatment that administers ozone gas directly into your body to aid self-healing.

(Shortform note: While some doctors agree that reducing exposure to antibacterial products and antibiotics promotes healthy gut bacteria, they express concerns about how little research exists regarding the safety and effectiveness of ozone therapy. Some possible side effects of this therapy include air embolisms that can lead to a stroke or a heart attack, abdominal cramping, and flu-like symptoms. Due to the lack of substantial evidence regarding both the benefits and side effects of ozone therapy, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has yet to authorize or regulate it. However, it has issued a warning against using ozone therapy.)

Factor 3: Excess Metals in Your Body

The third cause of mitochondrial inefficiency is having excess metals in your body. Asprey explains that the energy-extraction process mitochondria use to power your cells is an electrical process. Since metals have high electrical conductivity properties, having too many of them in your body interferes with this energy-extraction process and often results in mitochondrial dysfunction and mitochondrial death.

(Shortform note: Research briefly expands on how excess metals disrupt mitochondrial function. Mitochondria are particularly rich in minerals. While it’s not yet clear exactly what role these minerals play in mitochondrial function, what is known is that excess metals displace these minerals—which then disrupts mitochondrial physiology, preventing them from fulfilling basic functions.)

According to Asprey, you’re more likely to have excess metals in your body if you eat food derived from crops planted in thallium-rich soil, consume high quantities of oceanic fish, have dental fillings, or spend a substantial amount of time under fluorescent lighting. Therefore, avoiding such things can reduce the levels of metal in your body to a safe level.

(Shortform note: While it’s true that avoiding these things might help lower the levels of metal in your body, there’s no way to completely avoid them—metals are everywhere, in our soil, water, and air. And the more you’re exposed to them, the more they accumulate in the soft tissues in your body. Over time, this accumulation can cause muscular and neurological degeneration, mimicking symptoms associated with age-related diseases such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s. Unfortunately, these symptoms prevent many people from getting the correct treatment—because they assume that they’re suffering due to their age rather than from excess metals.)

Solution: Consume Binding Agents to Detox Your Body of Excess Metals

In addition to avoiding exposure to excess metals, Asprey suggests that you can detox your body of existing metals by consuming binding agents such as glutathione or activated charcoal. These substances work by binding themselves to the metals in your body. Your body then eliminates these metals through your urine and stool. However, Asprey warns that these binding agents can also bind to and inactivate useful substances, such as prescription medications or vitamins. Therefore, he recommends that you seek medical advice before consuming them.

(Shortform note: There isn’t enough research to confirm if either of these supplements can safely detox your body of excess metals. Reported side effects of glutathione supplements include cramping, bloating, and allergic reactions. Furthermore, researchers aren’t sure if these supplements cause adverse reactions in pregnant people or those breastfeeding. Additionally, researchers aren’t sure if activated charcoal supplements effectively treat any medical conditions. As such, medicinal use has not been approved by the FDA. Reported side effects include severe constipation, black stools, heartburn, a sore throat, dehydration, and dizziness.)

Factor 4: Sleep Deprivation

The fourth cause of mitochondrial inefficiency is suffering from sleep deprivation. According to Asprey, sleep deprivation results from missing out on good-quality sleep that maximizes your time in deep sleep (otherwise known as “delta sleep”). This phase of sleep provides many health benefits: It regulates your hormones, improves your cognitive abilities, reduces your stress levels, and helps your mitochondria eliminate cellular waste.

(Shortform note: Research expands on why deep sleep offers so many health benefits. During this phase of sleep, your neuronal activity decreases, reducing your body’s energy expenditure. This enables your body to divert more resources toward regulating your metabolism and hormones and managing your cellular health. One key benefit of these extra resources is that they enable mitochondria to extract significantly more energy to power cellular function than they can while you’re awake or sleeping lightly.)

Asprey suggests that you can improve the quality of your sleep by making two lifestyle changes: adapting your lighting and tracking your sleeping patterns. Let’s explore each of these methods in detail.

Lifestyle Change #1: Adapt Your Lighting

The first lifestyle change for improving your sleep quality is to adapt your lighting. Asprey explains that you’re more likely to suffer from sleep deprivation if you’re regularly exposed to blue light from LED bulbs and screens. This is because your body’s natural sleep cycle is designed to match the rhythm of the sun: During sunlight hours, your body releases chemicals that make you feel alert and active. When the sun goes down, your body releases chemicals that make you want to sleep and recover. However, blue lighting disrupts this sleep cycle by making your body think that the sun’s out all the time.

(Shortform note: Research supports what Asprey says and reveals that blue light exposure may have twice the impact on children’s sleep cycles than it does on adults. This is because children have larger pupils and are more sensitive to light than adults.)

Asprey suggests that you can minimize this disruption to your sleep cycle by replacing the lighting in your environment with red bulbs, turning off all screens and dimming your lights two hours before you plan to sleep, and wearing glasses that filter out blue light. He also recommends that you spend ten to twenty minutes in the sun each morning (before the sun’s at its most powerful) to balance your exposure to artificial light sources.

(Shortform note: Many health practitioners offer the same advice for reducing blue light exposure. Additionally, some suggest that you can give yourself even more protection by taking carotenoid supplements. Research suggests that these supplements may strengthen the cells around your retina and boost your natural ability to block blue light.)

Lifestyle Change #2: Track Your Sleeping Patterns

In addition to adapting your light sources, Asprey suggests that you can improve the quality of your sleep by tracking your sleeping patterns. Asprey recommends using a sleep tracker that also gathers data from your daytime activities. This type of tracker will reveal how your daytime activities impact the quality of your sleep—providing information that will help you make lifestyle decisions that maximize your time in deep sleep. For example, it might reveal that you benefit from more time in deep sleep when you exercise or eat certain foods during the day.

(Shortform note: Sleep trackers may worsen sleep due to orthosomnia—an obsession with improving sleep tracker data instead of actual sleep quality. Ongoing research suggests that sleep trackers can’t accurately interpret all sleep metrics. However, people with orthosomnia overestimate the accuracy of their sleep data, which leads them to misunderstand how well they’re actually sleeping. They then set misplaced sleep goals that improve sleep tracker data to the detriment of actual sleep quality. For example, in one study, some participants attempted to manipulate their sleep tracker data by staying in bed for longer periods. This preoccupation with inaccurate data often creates anxiety that interferes with good-quality sleep.)

Factor 5: Hormonal Imbalances

The fifth cause of mitochondrial inefficiency is hormonal imbalances in your body. Asprey argues that hormones play a key part in how well mitochondria function because they help maintain your overall health (thereby reducing the damaged and dysfunctional cells mitochondria must deal with).

As you age, your body slows down its production of certain hormones such as testosterone and estrogen, resulting in an imbalance that can cause many of the undesirable symptoms we associate with old age. These symptoms include mood swings, weight gain, poor sleeping patterns, low fertility levels, and sexual dysfunction.

(Shortform note: According to research, the body produces over 50 different hormones, all of which contribute to essential bodily processes. While age does decrease the production of some of these hormones, it also increases the production of others. In addition to testosterone and estrogen, hormones that decrease with age include aldosterone, calcitonin, growth hormone, renin, and prolactin. The hormones that increase with age include follicle-stimulating hormone, luteinizing hormone, norepinephrine, and parathyroid hormone. People can experience several different symptoms depending on what type of hormonal imbalance they have.)

Asprey claims that old age isn’t the only cause of hormonal imbalances. Various other factors can disrupt your hormones, such as a lack of sleep or nutrition, a sedentary lifestyle, using personal care products made with hormone-disrupting chemicals, and taking prescription medications or hormonal birth control.

(Shortform note: According to research, there are many possible causes of hormonal imbalances. In addition to Asprey’s list, these causes include high stress levels; damage to the endocrine gland; eating disorders; tumors and/or chemotherapy treatments; an underactive or overactive thyroid; and autoimmune diseases such as Hashimoto’s, Graves’ diabetes, or Addison’s.)

Four Methods for Rebalancing Your Hormones

Asprey suggests four methods that, in addition to all of the advice we’ve already discussed, can help you prevent or reverse hormonal imbalances.

1) Practice high-intensity exercises a few times a week.

(Shortform note: While high-intensity exercise can boost levels of muscle-maintaining hormones (such as testosterone), it can also lead to elevated levels of stress hormones (such as cortisol). Medical professionals suggest that you can benefit from high-intensity exercises and curb your stress hormone levels by taking time to recover in between workout sessions.)

2) Replace chemical-laden products with natural ones.

(Shortform note: It’s challenging to know what commercial products to avoid, since they use numerous variants of and names for hormone-disrupting chemicals. Instead of trying to come up with a list of the thousands of ingredients and names to look out for, simply try to avoid any products containing three main hormone disruptors: formaldehyde, bisphenol A (BPA), and phthalates. Additionally, health practitioners recommend that you avoid any products that include “fragrance” or “parfum” in their list of ingredients.)

3) Check the effects of any prescription medications.

(Shortform note: According to hormone specialists, there are three types of prescription medications that are notorious for disrupting hormones: analgesics (for treating pain), steroids (for treating inflammation), and isotretinoin (for treating acne).)

4) Find replacements for hormonal birth control.

(Shortform note: There are a variety of non-hormonal contraceptive options available, including condoms, sponges, cervical caps, diaphragms, spermicides, and non-hormonal IUDs. Additionally, surgical procedures include vasectomies for people with penises and tubal ligations or occlusions for people with vaginas.)

How to Rebalance Hormones if Lifestyle Changes Don’t Work

If changing your lifestyle doesn’t help to rebalance your hormones, Asprey recommends undertaking bioidentical hormone replacement therapy (BHRT). Bioidentical hormones are chemically identical to those your body naturally produces—which makes it easier for your body to assimilate them into your hormonal makeup. These hormones can be administered in various ways—through injections, by taking pills, or by putting on patches or creams.

(Shortform note: Bioidentical hormones are marketed as “natural,” and therefore safer and more effective than hormones used in traditional hormone therapy. However, though bioidentical hormones originate from natural sources, such as plants or animals, they require heavy processing—meaning that by the time the hormones are ready for treatment, they’re no longer natural. Further, according to the FDA and several medical specialty groups, there isn’t any evidence that proves bioidentical hormones are safer or more effective than hormones used in traditional hormonal therapy.)

Factor 6: Stem Cell Deficiencies

The sixth cause of mitochondrial inefficiency is stem cell deficiencies. We previously touched on how mitochondria are responsible for replacing dead or dysfunctional cells with healthy ones. Asprey explains that mitochondria rely on stem cells to initiate the creation of all healthy replacement cells.

As you age, your stem cell reserves dwindle, slowing down the replacement of dead or dysfunctional cells with healthy ones. This causes tissues throughout your body to lose more cells than they can replace. According to Asprey, this tissue loss is a prime cause of age-related deterioration, resulting in symptoms such as cognitive decline (from the loss of brain tissue) and impaired healing abilities (from the loss of muscle tissue).

Two Types of Stem Cells: Embryonic and Adult

Research suggests that stem cell deficiencies are both the result of getting older chronologically and a prime cause of biological aging—because, as Asprey says, a stem cell deficiency leads to tissue loss that produces further cellular damage. The research also expands on the two different types of stem cells in the body: embryonic stem cells and adult stem cells.

Embryonic stem cells are pluripotent, which means they have the potential to become any one of the 220 different cell types in the body. As such, they’re present during the body’s earliest stage of development during the zygote’s cell-division phase.

Adult stem cells are multipotent, which means they have the potential to turn into a specific type of cell but are limited to specific regions of the body. For example, neural stem cells can become different kinds of brain cells but they can’t become heart cells. Adult stem cells arise once the embryo fully develops.

Undertake Stem Cell Treatments

Asprey suggests that you can increase your stem cell count and prevent tissue damage by undertaking stem cell treatments. During these treatments, a practitioner extracts and processes healthy stem cells from your subcutaneous fat or bone marrow before reinjecting them into specific areas of your body that require healing. Asprey also recommends freezing healthy stem cells when you’re young so that you can benefit from them when you’re older.

Why Stem Cell Treatments Don’t Always Work

While stem cell treatments can boost your stem cell count and help regenerate damaged nerves, tissues, and organs, there are three factors that determine their effectiveness.

• The severity of your injury: Minor injuries are easier to heal than major ones. For example, a partial muscle tear requires fewer treatments to aid healing than a complete tear.

• Your current healthy stem cell count: Injected stem cells promote healing by encouraging existing healthy stem cells to multiply and create additional ones. The fewer healthy stem cells you have to start with, the less impact injected stem cells can have on your count—and the more treatments you’ll need before you can benefit from them.

• Your lifestyle: Unhealthy habits such as smoking or excessive alcohol consumption impact the effectiveness of stem cell treatments in two ways: First, they negate the quality of the stem cells extracted from your body—which means that these stem cells might not be healthy enough to reinject into your body. Second, they inhibit your body’s ability to recover and benefit from the treatments.