Morning, long-lifers. Here’s what’s new:
Handgrip training sped up nerve signals in just four weeks - proof that your nervous system might be faster to upgrade than your Wi-Fi.
Somewhere, a stress ball just became the cheapest biohack on the market.
Don’t keep longer. a secret - share it with your friends!
This week in longevity:
🍵 Green Mediterranean diet slows brain aging markers
🍷 Even light drinking raises dementia risk
🥬 Kimchi lowers blood sugar and blood pressure
👓 Eye drops help ditch reading glasses for two years
🌿 Plant extract sharpens memory and focus
Plus, more longevity breakthroughs.
Read time: 5 minutes
THIS WEEK IN LONGEVITY
💪 Handgrip Training Speeds Up Nerve Signals in Just 4 Weeks
Source: Midjourney | longer.
Just one month of handgrip exercises helped older adults send nerve signals faster, researchers found. Both younger and older participants improved by the same amount, showing that even aging nerves stay surprisingly adaptable. Basically, a stress ball might double as a brain-speed upgrade.
What to know:
The study: 48 adults aged 18 to 84 trained with grip tools three times a week for four weeks.
The results: Nerve conduction velocity (how fast electrical signals travel from spinal cord to muscle) improved by 5.6% in both young and older groups.
Age didn’t matter: Older adults adapted just as much as younger ones, even though past muscle studies suggested slower gains with age.
Nerve first, muscle later: Older adults didn’t gain measurable strength in a month, but their nerve speed still improved.
Why this matters: Faster nerve signals mean sharper reflexes and possibly fewer falls, a major risk for older adults.
Why it matters: Sharper nerves can mean steadier walking, quicker reflexes, and fewer dangerous stumbles as we age. Turns out, your nervous system may be more flexible than your knees.
What this means in practice: Squeezing a grip trainer, stress ball, or even a tennis ball for a few minutes a day could help keep your reflexes sharp. Cheap, simple, and no gym membership required.
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🧠 Green Tea, Walnuts, and a Tiny Plant May Help Slow Brain Aging
Source: Midjourney | longer.
An 18-month trial suggests that a “Green Mediterranean” diet with green tea, walnuts, and Mankai duckweed may lower blood proteins linked to faster brain aging. While not a cure for memory loss, the results point to a diet tweak that could keep your brain acting younger than your birth certificate.
What to know:
The diet: Nearly 300 adults with weight or cholesterol issues followed either a standard Mediterranean diet or a green-Mediterranean version with Mankai shakes, daily walnuts, and 3–4 cups of green tea.
The proteins: Two markers of accelerated brain aging, Galectin-9 and Decorin, were tracked in blood.
The findings: The green-Mediterranean group saw lower Galectin-9 and slower increases in Decorin compared to other diets.
The food power: Green tea provided anti-inflammatory polyphenols (like EGCG), walnuts added healthy fats and plant compounds, and Mankai delivered extra protein and antioxidants.
The caveats: Most participants were men with metabolic issues, and the study didn’t test memory directly, only protein shifts.
Why it matters: Shaping your brain’s future might be as simple as shaping your grocery list. The right mix of plants could help your neurons age more gracefully. Think of it as skincare, but for your cortex.
What this means in practice: Green tea and walnuts are easy wins to add to your daily routine. Mankai powders or frozen cubes may hit shelves soon, but you don’t need to wait—your pantry already has most of the tools.
💡 Want to break down a research article? Try this prompt in ChatGPT:
“Explain this in plain language. Avoid science terms. Keep it under 5 sentences. Then give 5 takeaways based only on this summary—no extra info or guesses: [Paste the article here]”
MONEY MOVES IN LONGEVITY
💰 Until Labs raises $58m Series A for organ cryopreservation, buying transplant patients precious time.
💰 Bio Protocol raises $6.9m for AI-native DeSci platform, letting research funding flow as fast as ideas.
💰 Leal Therapeutics secures $30m Series A for neuro-metabolic drugs, tackling brain disorders where options run thin.
IN THE SPOTLIGHT
Source: Midjourney | longer.
1. Plant extract sharpens healthy minds
A trial found ac-11®, from the Amazonian vine Uncaria tomentosa, boosted memory, attention, and executive function in healthy adults. Effects even lingered post-use. Brain supplements usually target decline, but this one claims to push already-healthy cognition a little higher—like turning up brightness on an already clear screen.
2. AI forecasts diseases years ahead
Researchers trained Delphi-2M on millions of health records, predicting over 1,000 conditions years before diagnosis. It outperformed age-based risk models but needs more testing. Think of it as a health weather forecast—spotting storms early so doctors can act before symptoms even appear.
3. Lab-grown immune cells rejuvenate aging brains
Cedars-Sinai scientists created “young” immune cells from stem cells that reversed memory loss and protected neurons in aging and Alzheimer’s mice. Benefits appeared after short treatment. Instead of borrowing youth from young blood, this approach manufactures it—offering a renewable way to restore aging brain function.
THE NEXT BIG THING
Sam Altman takes on Musk in brain tech
Source: Midjourney | longer.
Sam Altman just started a new company called Merge Labs to rival Elon Musk’s Neuralink.
Instead of drilling into the skull, Merge Labs wants to use gentler tools like sound waves and biology tricks to link the brain with computers. The goal: move phones and devices with pure thought, no hands needed.
Big leap in tech or science fiction stretch?
WHAT ELSE YOU SHOULD KNOW THIS WEEK
Source: Midjourney | longer.
🍷 Brain Burden: Oxford scientists studied 2.4 million people and found no safe alcohol level for brain health. Even light drinking raised dementia risk significantly.
🥬 Kimchi Cure: A UConn review of nine studies found fermented kimchi lowers blood sugar, triglycerides, and blood pressure. Despite being salty, its probiotics may actually protect heart and metabolic health.
👁️ Clear Vision: Scientists tested new eye drops on 766 adults with age-related farsightedness and found people could read two to three extra chart lines. The effect lasted up to two years, helping many avoid reading glasses.
❤️ Pressure Pick: Scientists built a calculator from 500 trials and 100,000 people to show how much each drug lowers blood pressure. It could transform care and prevent millions of strokes and heart attacks.
🎂 Longevity Balance: Scientists studied 117-year-old Maria Branyas and found both severe aging signs and protective traits. Her biology reveals how aging and resilience can coexist.
WHAT WE’RE BOOKMARKING
📱 Social
2 hours of nightly scent exposure boosted memory by 226% in older adults in a small RCT
The scents (rose, orange, eucalyptus, lemon, peppermint, rosemary, and lavender) likely stimulate and strengthen brain pathways directly linked to memory
— #Brandon Luu, MD (#@BrandonLuuMD)
11:02 AM • Sep 21, 2025
NEW STUDY: The amino acid L-theanine, first isolated from green tea in the 1940s, is used to improve mood and sleep 🍵 Study in mice finds L-theanine suppresses metastasis of prostate cancer, the second most common cause of death in men worldwide... 🧵
— #David Sinclair (#@davidasinclair)
1:39 PM • Sep 22, 2025
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