What if there is, an existence of a longevity pill, a promise of life extension free from diseases. Except that you’d have to take it daily without fail. Would you do it? Would you establish the discipline of a daily routine, to achieve this goal? 

The answer lies largely on an inherent system that we operate on. Our belief system – a set of values, codes, or ideologies that we hold, forming the lens to how we perceive the world around us. It is moulded by environment, social, cultural, and personal influences. What we believe, brings forth a tenacity of faith, keeping us rooted to a cause that we convince ourselves that there will be results; the analogy of a miracle pill that we may choose to stick to our faith through a daily discipline. Faith through an inherent belief of the eventual outcome will lead us to establish a personalised routine. 

“Faith – a substance of things hope for, an evidence of things not seen”. Hebrews 11:1-6

It is rather obvious that this miracle pill doesn’t exist. However, it is not a ludicrous thought to spare. The continuous, unceasing efforts of upholding lifestyle best practices throughout our lives could be that “pill” we are all looking for; one that is difficult for many to swallow. In the quest for seeking longevity answers, Ni et al. (2023) identified among all modifiable risk factors related to longevity, BMI relating to obesity is found to be a critical target which affects systolic blood pressure, plasma lipids, and Type-2 diabetes. Tacking BMI as a result of lifestyle changes would however, require a consistent and reproducible effort over a long term to yield positive outcomes. Just as how a gym goer, whom after 1 session of workout regime, will not experience any physical change when he look at himself in the mirror. It is up to a point in the future, where he looks at himself after weeks and months of consistent effort, the change could finally be noticed. It is often arduous, excruciating perhaps, for a reward that seemingly small and elusive. Yet he stuck to his faith, believing in an evidence not yet seen.

The Power of Marginal Gains

One of my favourite books, “Atomic Habits” by James Clear, illustrated the aggregation of marginal gains with the story of the British cycling team’s success. For over a hundred years, the British cycling team was stuck in mediocrity with a consistency of underwhelming performance. It was up to a point in 2003 where a British coach, Brailsford, was hired and he changed the course of British cycling. He believed in the aggregation of tiny gains of 1%, having put altogether, will eventually yield a significant impact. Brailsford and his coaches began redesigning bike seats for extra comfort, rubbed alcohol on tyres for extra grip, changed fabrics used for their cycling suit for better aerodynamics, down to even the choice of pillows and mattresses for the best night’s rest. In just 5 years, the British cycling team dominated the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, and subsequently raised the bar in London Olympic Games with 9 olympic records and 7 new world records (Clear, 2018). 

The inspiration behind this story, stemmed from a belief held by Brailsford and his team. In a century long of lacklustre performance, one can only imagine the amount of faith required to overcome the elusiveness of a gold medal. This is one that is highly applicable our lives, especially in the realm of health and longevity. Health span not only is time-dependent, it begs of consistency and lifelong commitment to various lifestyle factors beyond just diet. A small change of 1% on a daily basis, coupled with the commitment to other changes surrounding our exposome, would eventually yield compounding dividends for our health. It is also the reflection of blue-zone centenarians on their adoption of a lifelong zest for health, purpose, and community. 

The landscape of healthcare is slowly moving from disease management towards disease prevention and health span. It is a concerted effort beyond public health policies, as we gain more knowledge and awareness along with science-backed evidences on certain lifestyle adoptions. It is for the best, that we keep our faith in pursuit for health and longevity, our resilience and joie de vivre. After all, “our bodies are the only place we have to live in” – Jim Rohn

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References

Ni, Xiaolin et al. (2023). Modifiable pathways for longevity: A Mendelian randomization analysis. Clinical Nutrition, Volume 42, Issue 6, 1041 – 1047

Clear, J. (2018). Atomic habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones. Avery, an imprint of Penguin Random House.