In this episode with our guest Dr. Thomas Seager, we delve into the transformative power of cold plunge therapy and its profound effects on resilience and longevity. We explore real-life case studies, including lessons learned from infrastructure failures like Hurricane Katrina and the Oroville Dam crisis. Discover how psychological resilience shapes our responses to stress, the importance of hormesis in health, and the role of brown fat in metabolism. We also discuss the impact of fasting, caloric restriction, and the relationship between mitochondrial health and aging.

Check out the links below for further information and/or reading about some of the things we discussed in this podcast episode. Note that we do not necessarily endorse or agree with the content of these readings, but present them as supplementary material that may deepen your understanding of the topic after you listen to our podcast. This list is in no way exhaustive, but it’s a good start!

Health effects of voluntary exposure to cold water – a continuing subject of debate - PMC

This review paper evaluates 104 studies on the effects of cold exposure. The authors highlight several limitations with the existing research studies including small cohort size, lack of standardized outcome measures, and acute cold exposures with limited follow up. Of the studies that evaluated health outcomes, several reported health benefits including improved insulin sensitivity, reduced inflammation, body fat and self-reported pain. Despite this initial promise, larger, more rigorously designed studies including standardized protocols and measures are needed to validate the health benefits of cold water exposure

Physiological hormesis and hormetins in biogerontology - ScienceDirect

Thomas and Matt talk about a fundamental concept called hormesis, which may be mediating the physiological benefits of cold exposure. Hormesis is a mild and acute stress that elicits homeostatic response mechanisms and biological adaptations that make cells more resilient to future stressors. Exercise is an example of a hormetic stressor that causes micro tears to muscle, increases the production of damaging reactive oxygen species and intiates a proinflammatory response. Following exercise, the body repairs muscles so they are stronger than they were before and increases gene expression and activity of antioxidant and anti-inflammatory molecules that may help combat age-related damage accumulation. Thomas proposes that cold exposure is a type of hormetic stressor that enhances antioxidant, immune, and metabolic function.

Nina Teicholz at TEDxEast: The Big Fat Surprise

Nina Teicholz’s TEDx talk, The Big Fat Surprise, challenges decades of conventional wisdom on dietary fat. She argues that saturated fats—found in foods like meat, butter, and cheese—are not harmful but essential for health. Teicholz critiques the flawed science and vested interests that shaped low-fat dietary guidelines, which she claims have contributed to poor health outcomes. By revisiting historical data and exploring dietary studies suggesting benefits of whole fats, she advocates for a reevaluation of nutrition policies

Antifragile: Things that Gain from Disorder

In their discussions on stress and how it affects human biology, Thomas talks about the concept of “antifragility”, initially proposed by Nassim Taleb. In this lecture, Taleb extrapolates on the concept of antifragility, which describes systems that improve when exposed to stressors, volatility, and chaos. In comparison to resilient systems that merely resist stressors, antifragile systems thrive on them, gaining strength and new capabilities from challenges. Taleb suggests this principle applies across various domains, including biology, economics, and personal development. Taleb argues that embracing failure and intentionally engaging with stress and challenges can lead to growth, suggesting that we should design our lives and systems to be antifragile.

Impact of Intermittent Fasting and/or Caloric Restriction on Aging-Related Outcomes in Adults: A Scoping Review of Randomized Controlled Trials

The act of eating and fasting in confined windows of time, known as time restricted eating (TRE), has become a hot topic in the longevity field due to promising literature of its effects for health optimization and disease prevention. Whether TRE is uniquely beneficial for healthy aging compared to caloric restriction itself is controversial. Matt discusses the data suggesting that the potential benefits of TRE are primarily mediated through caloric restriction (CR) rather than the biological influence of the timing of an individual’s fasting window itself. This systematic review evaluated thirty studies on intermittent fasting (IF) and CR (12 IF, 10 CR, and 8 combined IF and CR interventions) and their associated effects on various healthspan metrics. Within this review, the authors included TRE as a fasting modality that is part of the broader domain of IF. CR and IF were both associated with weight loss; however, IF studies tended to report greater adherence compared with CR. Overall, IF and CR were equivalently effective across cardiometabolic, cancer, and neurocognitive outcomes. The authors suggest that IF has health benefits in a variety of conditions and may be better accepted and tolerated than CR, but more comparative research is required.