Three Not-So-Bad Things on Aging and Longevity
A Weekly Newsletter
There’s no denying it: we are constantly bombarded with bad news. A pandemic, climate change, inflation, war, political discord—the list goes on. Here at the Longevity Project, we understand that bad news can be enough to take years off your life, so we want to do our part (however small) to balance the scales.
At the end of the day, though, we’re realists. Good news is hard to come by, no matter how hard you look. So we’ll aim a little lower and without further ado, we are pleased to share our first weekly newsletter: Three Not-So-Bad Things on Longevity and Aging. Feel free to share with others and send us items you want to see included. With some luck, you will see this newsletter (and some more not so bad news) every Wednesday.
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APRIL 2, 2025
1. We Want You to Be Happy, So Drop on in For Dinner.
Since 2005, Gallup has annually conducted its World Poll to measure the attitudes, beliefs, and well-being of people across the world. The poll covers 140+ countries, is conducted in more than 145 languages, and reaches more than 150,000 people. It’s a treasure trove of data on the human experience.
The poll often leads to important insights about human flourishing, and this year, the people at the World Happiness Report have studied the relationship between sharing meals and human happiness and sense of well-being. And perhaps not so surprisingly in an era when we are increasingly aware of the importance of social connection, the researchers found a significant, positive relationship in almost all regions. Not only do countries where meal sharing is more common tend to report higher levels of wellbeing, but this is true even when comparing people who live in the same country. The statistically significant relationship between communal eating and well-being holds true even after holding constant for characteristics such as gender, age, income, and living alone.
There is good news and bad news for Americans. The good news is that eating together brings immediate benefits. Americans who eat at least one meal with others report higher levels of happiness and lower levels of stress, pain, and sadness on that day. But the number of people who eat with others here in the US is in rapid decline. In 2023, roughly 25% of Americans reported eating all of their meals alone the previous day – an increase of more than 50% since 2003. Dining alone has become more prevalent for every age group, but especially for young people. Today, 18 to 24-year-olds in the US are 90% more likely to eat every meal alone on a given day than they were in 2003.
Americans live increasingly isolated and disconnected lives. Check out the drive through traffic jams at Chik-Fil-A or the number of people in public spaces with their heads down in their phones. It’s undoubtedly lonely, but not inevitable: if you’re looking for new pathways to personal happiness, push aside that tv dinner and belly up to the table next to someone you love, or like, or even just tolerate. It all builds social connection and supports human happiness.
Shameless Self Promotion #1.
And we want you to be healthy too, so drop by the second annual Healthy Aging conference, convened by the Longevity Project and the Lifestyle Medicine Program at Stanford. These year’s theme is “Mind and Body,” and we will be joined on May 5 at Stanford and virtual by luminaries such as Deepak Chopra, Chip Conley, Elissa Epel, BJ Fogg, and many more. It’s not to be missed! Buy your tickets here.
2. If Millie Is Coming to Dinner, We Will Serve Fish.
We’re unabashedly dog people here at TNSB - witness our long-time fascination with Bobi, who was crowned the world’s oldest dog by the Guiness Book of World Records. But Bobi broke our heart when he was stripped of his title and implicated in the greatest public scandal since Teapot Dome.
So, cats will have to do. Meet Millie, a British tabby who just turned 30, according to her owner, Leslie Greenhough. If validated, Millie would be the world’s oldest living cat, beating out Flossie, who is nine months younger. Greenhough attributes Millie’s longevity to “lots of treats” and cuddles, and a rather posh diet of prawns, salmon, and Bruxton spring water. Millie’s life has not been all seafood and fancy beverages though. Greenhough’s wife Paula, Millie’s original owner, passed away from COVID in 2020, and Millie has also faced bullying from neighborhood cats. But she has persevered well enough to celebrate three decades on earth.
Good on Millie we say, and we only hope that there are no hidden secrets, ala Bobi, left untold. Regardless, Millie still has a long way to go to beat the all-time feline longevity record, held by Crème Puff, who passed away at age 38 in 2005.
Shameless Self Promotion #2.
Perhaps you are more interested in human longevity than feline longevity. Then check out the final episode of Season 7 of the Century Lives podcast. In season 7, we’ve been exploring why women live not just longer than men but spend a greater portion of their years in poor health. During the course of the season, we have explored topics such as the profound underinvestment in women’s health from the National Institutes of Health (an underinvestment that is likely only to get worse in the Trump years) to the impact of caregiving and financial stress on women’s health. In the final episode, we look at the historical disinterest of Silicon Valley in women’s health start-ups and tell the memorable story of Sara Nasari and her company QVIN as they try to bring a breakthrough menstrual blood product to market.
And if you think we are craven enough to write only about our own podcasts, think again. We also keep an eye out for other interesting podcasts in the longevity and aging space. Yesterday, we met Julian Issa, the host of Beyond Tomorrow Podcast with Julian Issa. It’s a new video podcast from the former Newsweek journalist that looks at the ideas, innovations, and breakthroughs changing the future in the longevity, health, human potential, and AI space. Season 1 includes interviews with Eric Verdin, Peter Diamandis, Brian Kennedy, Christian Angermayer and many more. Check it out and let us (and your fellow readers) know what you think.
3. She Makes the Cutoff by 46 years.
Millie is roughly 136 in human years and that makes her easily eligible to enter the Fireball Cinnamon Whiskey for life contest. The trick to the contest? You have to prove your love of Fireball Whiskey – strike one for us - and you have to show that you are the life of the party – a quick strike two - AND you have to be 90 years of age or older, which knocks us out even if we faked the first two.
We’re a little perplexed by the focus on nonagenarians. Perhaps it’s just general cheapness on the part of the Sazerac Company, which owns the brand. Life expectancy at age 90 is roughly 4 years (compared to roughly 55 at age 21), so the odds of losing money on this deal is rather limited. But let’s give credit where credit is due. Sazerac bought the beverage in 1989, renaming it from Dr. McGillicuddy’s Firewater Whiskey, and has made it one of the fastest growing distilled liquors in the country. And perhaps they are thinking that the age 90+ consumer market is set to explode.
We have our doubts but overall, we’re still favorable to the contest, because we like Fireball’s approach. It reflects the belief, according to the whiskey’s global brand director, that “when you’ve been partying for 90+ years, you don’t slow down”. Now that is an idea we can get behind.
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