Browse the evidence

Estrogen replacement therapy (ERT) in postmenopausal women improves muscle mass, strength, and power, and enhances the sensitivity of muscle to anabolic stimuli from exercise.

If you are postmenopausal and struggling to maintain muscle strength, talk to your doctor about Estrogen Replacement Therapy (ERT). It can help your muscles respond better to exercise, leading to greater gains in strength and power than exercise alone.

Exposure to artificial light at night (ALAN), particularly blue-shifted light from LEDs and screens, disrupts circadian rhythms and is associated with increased risk of mood disorders, including depression and anxiety, through direct neural pathways and indirect hormonal/sleep disruptions.

To protect your mood and mental health, minimize exposure to bright, blue-rich light (LEDs, screens) in the hours before bed. Use dim, warm-colored lights (red/orange) if you must use electronics, and consider blue-light-blocking glasses if you work night shifts. Prioritize darkness during sleep to support natural melatonin production and circadian alignment.

Systematic vitamin D food fortification is an effective and cost-effective public health strategy to improve population-level vitamin D status and reduce deficiency, overcoming the limitations of individual supplementation and sunlight exposure.

If you live in a region with limited sun or eat few fatty fish, look for vitamin D-fortified foods like milk, margarine, or orange juice. This is a safe, passive way to maintain healthy vitamin D levels without needing to remember daily supplements. Check local guidelines for what foods are typically fortified in your country.

Marine omega-3 fatty acids (EPA and DHA) reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease, particularly coronary heart disease and sudden cardiac death, primarily through secondary prevention in high-risk patients (e.g., post-myocardial infarction), while evidence for primary prevention in healthy populations remains weak or inconclusive.

If you have heart disease or have had a heart attack, taking 840mg of EPA+DHA daily is a well-supported strategy to reduce mortality. If you are healthy and have no heart disease, taking omega-3 supplements is unlikely to prevent a heart attack, though it may offer other minor benefits. Focus on diet (fatty fish) rather than supplements for primary prevention.

Sarcopenia (low skeletal muscle mass) is a strong, independent predictor of increased overall and colorectal cancer-specific mortality in early-stage colorectal cancer patients, regardless of BMI.

If you have colorectal cancer, ask your medical team to assess your muscle mass using your CT scans. Maintaining muscle mass (avoiding sarcopenia) is critical for survival, even more so than your total body weight or BMI. Focus on preserving muscle through appropriate nutrition and activity as tolerated, rather than just tracking the scale.

High adiposity (specifically visceral adipose tissue) is associated with increased mortality risk in women with early-stage colorectal cancer, but this association is not significant in men.

For women with colorectal cancer, high levels of body fat (especially visceral fat) may increase mortality risk, unlike in men. This suggests that women might benefit from specific attention to body composition, ensuring adequate muscle mass while managing adiposity, rather than just focusing on weight.

CoQ10 supplementation (100-300 mg/day) improves mitochondrial function and reduces cardiovascular mortality in elderly populations with low baseline CoQ10 levels, particularly when combined with selenium.

If you are elderly and have low CoQ10 levels, supplementation with 200mg CoQ10 daily, potentially combined with 200mcg of selenium, may significantly reduce your risk of cardiovascular death over the long term. Consult a doctor to check your baseline levels before starting.

CoQ10 supplementation (100-300 mg/day) reduces inflammatory markers (TNF-α, IL-6) in patients with metabolic diseases, rheumatoid arthritis, and other inflammatory conditions.

If you have chronic inflammation, metabolic syndrome, or rheumatoid arthritis, taking 60-500mg of CoQ10 daily may help lower inflammatory markers like TNF-α and IL-6. This is particularly relevant if you have low baseline CoQ10 levels.

Obesity (BMI ≥ 30 kg/m²) is a primary driver of increased mortality risk, with relative risk of death increasing in a nonlinear manner as BMI rises.

Maintaining a healthy body weight is not just about appearance; it is a critical factor in longevity. The risk of death rises sharply as BMI increases, particularly above 30 kg/m². Prioritizing weight management through sustainable lifestyle changes is one of the most effective actions to reduce the risk of chronic diseases like diabetes, heart disease, and cancer.

Obesity is a major risk factor for coronary heart disease (CHD), with susceptibility increasing 2-3 times in obese adults.

Being overweight significantly increases your risk of coronary heart disease, making you 2-3 times more susceptible than those at a healthy weight. This is a major contributor to heart-related deaths. Managing your weight is a key strategy to protect your heart health.

Obesity is a significant risk factor for various cancers, with obese adults being 40% more likely to die from cancer than non-obese individuals.

Being overweight increases your risk of dying from cancer by 40%. This is particularly true for cancers of the breast, endometrium, colon, and kidney. Maintaining a healthy weight is one of the most effective ways to reduce your cancer risk, especially if you do not smoke.

Obesity is a major risk factor for osteoarthritis, particularly affecting the knees, hips, and lower back, due to mechanical stress and inflammation.

Excess body weight puts significant mechanical stress on your joints, particularly your knees, hips, and lower back, accelerating the wear and tear that leads to osteoarthritis. Losing weight is one of the most effective ways to reduce joint pain and improve mobility.

Germination of legumes and seeds significantly increases their melatonin content (up to 400% increase in soybeans and 11-fold in mung beans) compared to their raw state.

Sprout your legumes and seeds (like soybeans and mung beans) before eating them. Germination can increase melatonin content by up to 400% in soybeans and 11-fold in mung beans, maximizing the hormonal and antioxidant benefits of these foods.

Low-load blood flow restriction (LL-BFR) training produces muscle hypertrophy comparable to high-load (HL) resistance training in older adults, though it yields lower strength gains.

Older adults who cannot or should not lift heavy weights can still build muscle mass by using low-load resistance training combined with blood flow restriction (BFR). While this method builds muscle similarly to heavy lifting, it does not increase strength as much as heavy lifting does. It is a safe and effective option for maintaining muscle mass, especially for those with joint issues or comorbidities.

Oral supplementation with propionic acid (500 mg twice daily for 8 weeks) significantly reduces LDL and total cholesterol levels in hypercholesterolemic humans by modulating intestinal cholesterol absorption via an immune-dependent pathway involving regulatory T cells and IL-10.

If you have high LDL, adding 500mg of propionic acid twice daily for two months can significantly lower your bad cholesterol. This works by boosting specific immune cells in your gut that tell your intestines to absorb less cholesterol. It is a targeted, immune-based approach distinct from standard statins.

Critically ill patients lose approximately 2% of skeletal muscle mass per day during the first week of ICU admission, with rectus femoris thickness decreasing by 1.75% and cross-sectional area by 2.10% daily.

If you or a loved one is in the ICU, expect rapid muscle loss (approx. 2% per day) starting immediately. This is driven by inflammation, immobility, and metabolic stress. While you cannot stop the illness, early mobilization (as tolerated) and adequate protein intake are critical to slowing this specific rate of tissue breakdown.

Circadian misalignment, such as that experienced during shift work or social jet lag, causally impairs glucose tolerance and insulin sensitivity, thereby increasing the risk of type 2 diabetes.

If you work shifts or have irregular sleep schedules, prioritize managing light exposure and meal timing. Try to eat during your 'biological day' (when you are naturally alert) rather than your 'biological night'. If you must eat at night, be aware that glucose tolerance is impaired. On days off, try to keep your sleep/wake times closer to your workdays to minimize social jet lag.

Vitamin E (96-week course) improves NASH resolution in non-diabetic patients, but its use is limited by potential risks of hemorrhagic stroke and prostate cancer.

If you have NASH and are not diabetic, ask your doctor about Vitamin E. A 96-week course can significantly improve liver health (43% resolution vs 19% placebo), but you must weigh this against potential risks like prostate cancer or stroke.

Obesity is an independent risk factor for multiple cancers, with endometrial, post-menopausal breast, and colorectal cancers accounting for over 60% of cancers attributed to obesity.

Maintaining a healthy weight is one of the most effective ways to reduce your risk of developing endometrial, breast, and colorectal cancers. Focus on sustainable lifestyle changes rather than quick fixes, as even modest weight loss can significantly lower risk.

Among individual lifestyle factors, smoking cessation provides the largest survival benefit and life expectancy gain for individuals with multimorbidity, outweighing the benefits of physical activity, diet, or alcohol moderation.

If you smoke, quitting is the most powerful single action you can take to extend your life, especially if you have chronic conditions. It can add nearly 5-6 years to your life expectancy, far more than diet or exercise changes alone.

Higher body mass index (BMI) is linearly associated with an increased risk of incident type 2 diabetes, with the magnitude of this risk being significantly stronger in younger adults (ages 20-40) compared to older adults.

If you are under 40, your body is extremely sensitive to weight gain. Every kilogram you gain now carries a much higher risk of triggering diabetes than it would if you gained that same weight at age 60. Prioritize weight stability and metabolic health in your 20s and 30s, as the protective effect of youth is easily overridden by adiposity.

Adopting a pro-inflammatory diet, as measured by the Dietary Inflammatory Index (DII), significantly increases the risk of developing colorectal cancer (CRC) and cancer-related mortality.

To lower your risk of colorectal cancer, aim for an anti-inflammatory diet. This means minimizing processed foods, added sugars, and refined grains, while maximizing fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and healthy fats. You don't need to calculate a score; just focus on whole, unprocessed foods.

A pro-inflammatory diet is associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) incidence and CVD-related mortality.

Protect your heart by reducing dietary inflammation. Prioritize whole foods like vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and healthy fats, while limiting processed foods and added sugars. This approach supports cardiovascular health independently of other lifestyle factors.

Insulin resistance (IR) acts as a primary driver of cardiovascular disease (CVD) by promoting atherosclerosis through mechanisms including endothelial dysfunction, chronic low-grade inflammation, and dyslipidemia, independent of diabetes status.

Prioritize metabolic health markers like waist circumference and fasting insulin over just weight or cholesterol. Regular exercise and dietary modifications are the primary tools to improve insulin sensitivity and reduce cardiovascular risk, even if you are not diabetic.