Six longevity myths the experts want retired

The New York Times · Article

Melinda Wenner Moyer asked leading ageing researchers which popular claims they most want retired, and the answers cut against the online longevity boom - a space where searches quadrupled in a year and feeds fill with supplements and peptide injections. The six myths: that researchers aim to extend lifespan rather than healthspan; that people are getting healthier as they live longer; that drugs or supplements can extend human life; that women stay healthy longer than men; that losing weight is always good for older adults; and that looking after yourself can carry you to 100.

Key takeaways:

• The field’s goal is healthspan, not lifespan - extra years are a welcome side effect of staying healthy longer, not the target (Steven Austad, University of Alabama at Birmingham)
• US life expectancy rose only about six months from 2009 to 2019 while healthy life expectancy fell - the US was the only high-income country where healthy years declined
• No drug or supplement - peptides, resveratrol, NAD+ boosters, growth hormone - has been shown to extend human life; a 2026 study found blood NAD+ levels stay stable with age, and growth hormone raised joint pain and carpal tunnel risk in healthy older adults (Aladdin Shadyab, UC San Diego)
• Women live about five years longer than men but spend more of old age ill or disabled, especially after menopause - and most compounds that extend life in animals work better in males (Pankaj Kapahi, Buck Institute)
• Weight loss after 65 was linked to a 59% higher risk of death in a 30-study meta-analysis - older bodies lose muscle and bone disproportionately, not just fat
• Past 95, genetics outweigh lifestyle: the longest-lived do not eat, move, drink or smoke measurably better than everyone else (Sofiya Milman, Albert Einstein College of Medicine)

Hype check: The myths are the hype here, not the article - the pushback rests on human cohort data and meta-analyses, and its NAD+ point (blood levels stable with age) cuts against the decline narrative behind a shelf of supplements.