Agreed. Almost all of the list may not matter much.
Here’s a modified far lower cost “blueprint” (not medical advice, talk to your doc) - if ITP ends up translating - and it could well be better than Johnson’s plan:
ITP winning combo:
- Rapamycin + acarbose (+ optional canagliflozin intermittently)
Depending on insurance (even low-cost or free ACA HMOs) that can cover generic rapamycin with a low copay - $300/year or buy Indian rapamycin (and canaglifozin) - <$1000/year. (Note - it is marginally better to avoid generics destined for developing countries in the long run)
Old “polypill” concept with example generics (ideally when indicated and individualized therapy with titrated initially low-dose):
- Rosuvastatin+ezetimibe (rosuvastatin can be modified to intermittent to minimize potential side effects as needed)
- Candesartan cilexetil/telmisartan
- Low-dose aspirin (often optional, older adults consider avoiding this)
- Sildenafil/tadalafil
Assuming optimally split pills, this can cost <$10/month with insurance and sometimes less if optimal PBM use.
Diet (cost-effective version):
- Mixed vegetables + mushrooms (stir-fry blends in grocery can be ~$2, small dash of real EVOO for cooking - general heuristic is 100% Californian or elsewhere in the US)
- Lentils/black beans (~$1)
- Dark berries (flash-frozen, ~$2)
- Steel-cut oats (~$1)
- Mixed unsalted nuts/seeds (~$1)
- Sardines (includes soft edible bones, water/oil drained, ~$2)
- Morning coffee/green tea (~$1)
- Salt substitute - 75% NaCl/25% KCl (mostly foolproof and does not impart a bitter taste + metallic aftertaste where NuSalt does) & fresh whole spices ie chopped garlic, ginger, etc (~$1)
Can be ~$11/day or if you’re eating more, <$20/day (wash, scrub, and may soak produce with baking soda)
Can add/swap:
9. Sockeye salmon (astaxanthin) - may swap sardines
10. Collagen peptides (glycine) - may mix in lentil soup cooked in bone broth
11. Natto (spermidine + some MK-7) - may swap beans
Annual preventative generally covered $0 by insurance:
CBC w/ diff
CMP
HbA1c
Lipid panel
TSH/free T4 (optional, indicated if relevant symptoms)
Total cost:
$4,435 per year, but this includes food - it’s roughly around the average American grocery bill. Not surprised - since this would be most likely be mild calorie restriction for a sizable amount of people.
So in actuality this is really close to $0 additional spending.
Don’t see a big reason to spend ~$25k more on food/supplements/testing unless one doesn’t mind diminishing returns and can afford to (it’s the case for me - but I am quite aware most people do not have the same luxuries).
The average American is better off saving themselves scientifically proven extra years based on the laws of Physics by spending that money switching to a used 3-year-old midsize SUV with a 3x lower empirical fatality rate compared to their base model sedan. You’re more likely to get death and disability from a car accident than actually need to pay that much more for marginal items.
Even $5-8k more is already pushing the boundaries of returns, if one wanted to go organic - marginal for most foods on this list after processing and cooking, besides berries and some nuts.
Throw in a few marginal tests (apoB can be ~$3 cash pay, hs-CRP ~$18, one-time Lp(a) test around ~$12 is generally worthwhile) and targeted micronutrient interventions ie USP grade Vitamin D 1,000-2,000 IU, magnesium taurate, and creatine (Creapure) - it might be <$300/year.
If you really want to gamble a little further out with high safety profile interventions, assuming higher quality source:
High-dose EPA fish oil (EPA/DHA/mixed tocopherols), nutritional yeast (B-complex), unsalted bone broth (glycine/HA/glucosamine), deep orange egg yolk (lutein/zeaxanthin/phosphatidylcholine), 100% cacao nibs (cocoa flavanols), etc with microdose lithium, if not already available from the local water supply.
Not particularly difficult to add several “functional foods” with some animal-derived products, compared to the impractical “unicorn vegan excel spreadsheet diet” with a “kitchen sink” of pills that can have so many possible combined quality assurance and cost-effectiveness issues - often impossible to get USP grade or close to equivalent.
If you want a valid CLIA-certified whole genome sequencing test (ie useful for avoiding side effects in statins under pharmacogenetic standards or if you have clinically meaningful CYP variants etc), some clinical trials pay you to get one and you may meet the best physician-scientists involved (some may include multi-omics testing).
So, if one plays all the cards skillfully, one can come out way ahead of Johnson with an even better healthcare team and more quality data when considering the possible harms of “VIP medicine” and overtesting issues and getting paid for it.
Ultimately, may cost less than $0 additional with better results if skill is applied.
Then, add in some luck and one may get to “longevity escape velocity” - if it ends up being plausible. Spending $2M is really no match for average Joe and massive luck factor.
What isn’t usually mentioned is how much luck factor is involved. This “blueprint” concept appears to be aimed at media exposure and makes it seem as if engineering can currently bypass luck using some form of Big Data hyperbole. As much as the engineering side of me wanted to believe that we can currently do that, it’s just not true yet. Probably not anytime soon.