We have the ability to reverse ageing

Reginald Deschepper (68) is a medical anthropologist and an expert in lifestyle and ageing. He is a professor at the Free University of Brussels, where he conducted research into lifestyle medicine and the science of rejuvenation. At sixty-five, he was required to retire, but he has no intention of stopping work anytime soon. He has compiled his knowledge into two books: ‘Your Lifestyle as Medicine’ and ‘Younger Every Year: The Science of Rejuvenation or How to Outsmart Time’.

In your book ‘Younger Every Year’, you state that the science of ageing and rejuvenation has accelerated over the past 25 years. Why?

“A significant milestone is that we understand the main causes of ageing and see that it is not that difficult to slow down, stop, and even reverse the process. One of these main causes is the ageing of our DNA. As we get older, a layer forms on the DNA that makes the information in the DNA unreadable. The body needs this information to produce proteins, which in turn have functions in our body. If the shape of the proteins changes, it can lead to problems such as Alzheimer’s or other age-related diseases. Compare that layer to scratches on a CD. The result is that the music no longer plays correctly. But if you can remove those scratches, the music on the CD is still there, and you can listen to it again. This is how it works with our DNA: if we remove that layer, the information is still present, and the correct form of proteins can be produced again. This is one way to reverse ageing.”

This sounds spectacular. What other causes of ageing can you distinguish?

“Another example is senescent cells. These are cells that have aged and should actually die off and be replaced by new cells. But as we age, this process deteriorates, and these cells linger. They become zombie cells that damage healthy cells in their vicinity. Efforts are underway to develop drugs to clear these zombie cells. This has a huge impact on combating ageing.” “Another cause is the change in our microbiome, or the bacteria that live in and on our body. We see a clear difference between young and older people: the diversity of bacteria decreases with age. Our microbiome does a tremendous amount for our body, which we were not so aware of in the past. We now know that there is a clear connection between our microbiome and our brain. The microbiome also affects the health of the intestinal wall, which allows beneficial nutrients into the bloodstream, and this becomes more difficult as we age. Maintaining a healthy microbiome is therefore crucial for absorbing the right nutrients. This can be achieved, among other things, by eating a healthy and varied diet. However, scientists are also experimenting with microbiome transplants, where bacteria from young people are transferred to older people to combat ageing.”

Are these the main causes of ageing?

“In science, we identify about fifteen such causes. Each scientist conducts their own research into how we can slow down, stop, or even reverse such a cause. By intervening in one cause, you can already make a significant impact. But we also know that tackling two causes has more impact than the sum of the parts: one and one makes three. As a result, we are truly on the brink of an era in which a lot can change.”

Is there any research, innovation, or insight that stands out to you?

“Professor David Sinclair recently published a study that was announced by the journal Nature with the headline Turning back time. He managed to restore eye cells in mice. A typical problem: as you age, your vision deteriorates. He found a way to turn back the biological clock of those eye cells and demonstrated that the previously blind mice could see again. This provides the first evidence for the theory that we can not only slow down the lifecycle of our cells but also reverse it. And if it works with eye cells, it could also work with heart or nerve cells. Much research still needs to be conducted, for example, with mice, worms, and yeast cells. But if we succeed in this with humans, it would be a huge breakthrough: the potential to turn back our biological clock.”

How was Sinclair able to turn back the biological clock of those eye cells?

“Sinclair builds on the research of Nobel Prize winner Shinya Yamanaka. He previously discovered that there are four genes present in every cell in everyone. These are also known as the Yamanaka factors. These cells are currently inactive, but we can reactivate them. If we do that, the biological clock starts to turn back. Very fascinating and incredible! Initially, there was a practical problem: cells became so young that they turned into an embryonic cell, from which they could become anything. A skin cell could potentially become a brain cell, or worse: a cancer cell. Sinclair has now solved that problem. Instead of manipulating four genes, he manipulates three. And he knows how to turn back the clock so that the cells become younger, but not so young that they become an embryonic cell.”

This sounds almost like science fiction. Do you think we will experience these kinds of techniques, or is this really futuristic?

“A realistic expectation is that these kinds of techniques will become possible for most people during their lifetime. I envision that you could occasionally visit the doctor to get a vaccine that activates some of these mechanisms and thus turns back your biological age. That sounds like science fiction, but it’s not. We are already testing it, and it is also working in laboratory animals. The first studies now suggest that it could also work in humans.”

Are there things you can do today to grow ‘younger’ as you age?

“To age more slowly, it is important to eat healthily, stay active, manage stress well, maintain social contacts, get enough sleep, and find meaning in life. In short: a healthy lifestyle is the foundation. You can start at any age, and it has an effect at any age. For example, research has been conducted with elderly people in care homes and found that even at eighty-five, they could create a favourable effect. But it does apply: the earlier you start, the more impact you can make. My advice is to find a healthy lifestyle that you can maintain for a lifetime. Choose, for example, healthy foods that you also enjoy and a form of exercise that you find fun.”

Many people will read this and think – I already live quite healthily, how do I find out where I stand? What would you say to them?

“A measure is your biological age, which shows how far you are in the ageing process and can differ significantly from your chronological age. We know, for example, that how your skin looks strongly correlates with your biological age. This gives you a good indication. There are also scales where you can determine your metabolic age, ways to measure the strength in your hand, or blood analyses that map biomarkers, such as inflammation levels. This can help you gain more insight into where you currently stand.”

“I strive for an optimal concentration of nutrients in the body to slow down my biological clock as much as possible.”

And if I already live healthily, are there things I can do additionally – things that you as an expert also apply in your life?

“Certainly. The idea ‘what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger’ can also be applied to the ageing process. For example: if you sit in a sauna all day, you won’t come out alive. But if you go in for just fifteen minutes, various processes are activated that make us stronger. The same applies to stress from cold, which you can manipulate with an ice bath. I regularly step into the sauna myself.”

“I also eat healthily: mainly plant-based, as little sugar as possible, and balanced. Think of enough mushrooms, beans, and cabbages to maintain sufficient diversity in my microbiome. I supplement that diet with a number of supplements. Vitamin D3/K2, because these two work synergistically and almost everyone has a vitamin D deficiency. I also take omega 3 and supplement my diet with magnesium because this mineral is involved in many processes in the body. My guideline is actually: strive for an optimal concentration of nutrients in the body to slow down your biological clock as much as possible.”

Written by: Ariana Schmikli