Should you follow my example?
My wife took the photo below on August 24, 2023, on the outdoor terrace of a restaurant in Edgewater, NJ. Two months later, we celebrated my 69th birthday. If I look to you younger than 69, please read on!
My journey into longevity and performance nutrition research started with a disaster. Shortly before turning 42 in 1996, my life started to unravel from complications of undiagnosed late-stage type 2 diabetes.
I also became obese, couldn’t type or drive because of carpal tunnel syndrome, could barely walk a block because of knee pain from osteoarthritis, and couldn’t do my job because my thinking and behavior were compromised by insomnia, chronic fatigue, irritability, and depression.
By all accounts, someone in that shape should have been dead a long time ago. But that is not what happened. Instead of going to the doctors for conventional treatment with drugs and insulin, I hit medical textbooks, and here is what happened next:
Diabetes. I have been diabetes-free since 1999. For most people, a similar recovery was as likely to happen back then or even now as winning a lottery. I accomplished all that organically without taking drugs or injecting insulin.
Obesity. Depending on the season, my weight is 6 to 8 lb (3 to 4 kg) more than in my youth. I consider it normal and desirable for my age because, in case of a serious accident or disease, such as COVID-19, lean individuals are the first to die.
Carpal tunnel syndrome. I’ve been typing books, articles, social posts, and countless emails for the past 25 years, and this devastating disorder never returned. I didn't do anything specific to treat this condition. It magically disappeared on its own, along with diabetes and all other complications.
Osteoarthritis. I routinely fast-walk a few miles daily, either outside or on a treadmill inside, and my knees and hips are still perfectly fine. It's nice to know that no knee or hip replacements are in store for me.
Insomnia. Writing books and running a business without good sleep is nearly impossible because these jobs require gobs of energy, focus, and concentration. It didn't come without sacrifices, though. I had to give up on coffee, wine, beer, and occasional desserts.
Chronic fatigue. Normalizing blood sugar and restoring sleep had a magical effect on my energy levels. My work day starts at around 7 am and ends around 11 pm. I take a three-hour dinner break in between 15 to 20 minutes naps once or twice daily.
Irritability. Diabetes and irritability go hand-in-hand because unstable levels of insulin and blood sugar compromise mood, motivation, and cognitive functions. The ensuing behavior is a certain career breaker because nobody wants to be around an erratic jerk.
Depression. I experience bad moods from time to time, but nothing like the overwhelming sadness and hopelessness that used to define my state of mind in the mid-nineties. It's all vanished along with diabetes.
I mentioned “hitting” medical textbooks for a reason: my natural recovery methods were 100% based on basic principles of human physiology, biochemistry, and nutrition. I didn't use a single alternative treatment because none exists.
The human body is programmed by evolution to stay healthy, and it isn't evolution's fault when it gets sick. Once the causes of sickness are removed, the body returns to its natural healthy state. And that's exactly how I recovered from type 2 diabetes — once I removed its causes, my body gradually returned to “healthy" and stayed that way.
The good news is — if I could do it, so can you or anyone else because our genetic differences are less than 0.1%. The bad news — the treatment of diabetes has become a $400 billion-plus enterprise and it isn't likely to give up its profits anytime soon.
Almost thirty years later (1996 - 2024), my state of health and aging-related markers are equally astonishing for a man of my age:
Chronic disorders. I don’t have a single condition common for my age group. The top five are hypertension, osteoarthritis, diabetes, heart disease, and chronic respiratory disorders, such as bronchitis and obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
Bone disease. By age 70, most people experience height loss ranging from 0.5 to 2 inches (1.25 to 5 centimeters) due to spinal compression caused by degenerative bone disease. My current height is still the same as it was at 25, which means I am free of osteoporosis, osteomalacia, and osteoarthritis.
Muscle mass. Healthy muscles are required to support healthy bones and joints. The rate of muscle loss ranges from 1% to 2% per year past the age of 50, leading to about 25% for people under 70. Even though walking is my only exercise, my muscles remain intact.
Dental health. Of my original 32 teeth, I still have 30. One was extracted due to crowding in my youth, and another was accidentally broken by a dentist and replaced with an implant in 2016. According to cited statistics, less than 21% of adults retain all their teeth by age 70.
Hearing. My hearing, including high-pitched sounds, is still the same as in my twenties and thirties. Up to two-thirds of individuals aged 70 and older experience some degree of hearing loss, and it becomes more severe in later years.
Eyesight. I’ve been wearing eyeglasses to correct severe farsightedness and astigmatism since kindergarten. Approximately half of people my age have cataracts, which rises to around 70% or more for those over 75. Has never been an issue for me.
Genitourinary disorders. By my age, up to 70% of men experience enlarged prostate and erectile dysfunction. Neither condition has affected me, and I still sleep 6 to 7 hours without waking up most nights.
Mental health. Up to 40% of people of my generation experience memory loss and cognitive decline. Mine is fully intact, and I expect it to remain the same for the rest of my life.
Medication. I don’t take a single prescription or over-the-counter drug. On average, Americans of my age take from 2 to 7 prescription medications daily. Most of these drugs come with a list of side effects longer than this page. To imagine what this number of drugs may do to anyone my age, take a look at someone you know taking them.
It's worth noting that I attained all of the above results without resorting to hormone replacements, the transfusions of young blood, stem cells, cryotherapy, hyperbaric chambers, IV drips, punishing diets, longevity retreats, fillers, botox, thread lifts, plastic surgeries, concierge doctors, private trainers, and many other over-the-top treatments accessible mostly to the ultra-rich.
However impressive all of the above accomplishments may seem, more is needed to earn your trust. Here is what else I have done with my life after getting my health back.
Following my recovery, I researched and wrote four books between 1999 and 2014. Three were published in print, and the fourth I have turned into this website.
I also developed a drug-free method for managing chronic constipation that is free of side effects, beneficial to the body, and safe for extended use. Over the past 23 years of continuous use, its efficacy has been proven by tens of thousands of satisfied customers and positively analyzed by an independent researcher [link].
Even more unusual for someone my age, in the spring of 2017, I co-founded a software development company to build a professional-grade contact organizer for iPhone and Android that would outperform similar apps from Apple and Google by a wide margin [Skrol.us].
Since Skrol is still a startup, I am wearing the hats of the CEO, project manager, head designer, and copywriter. These demanding jobs commonly lead to burnout and nervous breakdowns among executives half my age.
In my case, no burnouts. No nervous breakdowns. No depression. No anxieties. No ulcers. No hypertension. No chronic fatigue. And no carpal tunnel syndrome or bad back from near-constant typing while doing all four jobs since 2017.
I am also stunned that one year away from 70, I am still pain-free, full of energy, forward-looking, perennially optimistic, and for the past seven years, have been able to put in 60 to 70 hours worth of hard work each week alongside my colleagues in their twenties and thirties.
Should you follow my example?
It depends on your age and state of health. If, for example, you are in your thirties or forties, still healthy, and would like to attain similar or better results, please read on because my experience is repeatable.
If you are already in your early fifties or sixties, your health and energy may have started to decline, and you would like to stop and reverse it, then reading this page to the end and acting on it may change your life as it did mine.
If you are already knee-deep into an irreversible health decline and taking multiple prescription medications, it may be too late to manage this process on your own. Sorry, I can't help you personally because I am not a physician licensed to diagnose underlying conditions and de-prescribe medicines.
If you begin following my recommendations while still in decent shape, you should and could attain the quality of life, performance, and appearance of someone in their forties or fifties well into your sixties and seventies.
If those approaches had worked so well for me and my family, there are no reasons why they wouldn’t work equally well for you and your family. They are also safer, simpler, more attainable, cost next to nothing, and are based on following these three rules:
Eat a moderate, balanced diet, as described in the last two chapters of Fiber Menace [link]. This diet is similar to Keto or Intermittent fasting but without extremes and side effects. I’ve been on this diet since 1996, and it is key to reversing and preventing most of the disorders I mentioned above.
Take professional-grade supplements to compensate for the age-related reduction of nutrient assimilation and inherent nutrient deficiencies of calorie-restricted diets. Quality supplements are essential for supporting your body in renewing itself, a physiological process known as structural metabolism [link].
Follow the previous two rules to remain healthy, so you can stay clear of prescription drugs whose insidious side effects will gradually undermine your sleep, energy, stamina, memory, cognition, mood, and appearance.
These three simple rules have saved my life, family, and career. My current state of health proves that an ounce of prevention at the right time is more valuable than a pound of cure when you are already sick! Making similar changes will have a similarly profound impact on your future, too!
From all other favorable circumstances of my life — good genes, college education, stable marriage, temperate lifestyle, moderate nutrition, and good luck — proper nutrition, supplementation, and zero prescription drugs were the only factors distinguishing me from millions of my equally blessed contemporaries.
I hope my example will inspire you to study the rest of this site, read my books, optimize your diet, take quality supplements, and start your journey toward exceptional health and longevity! And as far as good luck goes, the harder you work, the luckier you get!
A note of caution for the skeptics and doubters
The focus of my work isn’t on healthcare but on wellness. Let's review the differences between these two approaches when it comes to dealing with type 2 diabetes:
The wellness care approach is focused on eliminating all sources of metabolic disruptors, such as excessive carbohydrates, alcohol, and anything that tastes sweet, including artificial sweeteners.
The expected outcomes are full recovery from type 2 diabetes, sustained weight loss, zero drugs, zero side effects, zero cost, good quality of life, and extended lifespan.
The healthcare approach relies on prescription drugs, lab tests, daily glucose checks, and a high-carbohydrate diet to counterbalance medication-induced hypoglycemia.
The most common outcomes for patients are fatty liver, heart attacks, strokes, kidney failure, limb amputations, and up to 10-year reduction of life expectancy.
Diabetes-related amputations are far more common than you may think — around 154,000 occur annually in the United States alone, with one happening every 30 seconds. That's 1.5 million amputees in the last ten years. Wrap your head around it.
Would you now consider following my example?