Health
5 healthy habits may be the secret to living longer, Florida neurosurgeon reveals
The average life expectancy in the U.S. has dipped to 76.4 years, according to December data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) — but many medical professionals believe people can extend their longevity by adopting certain lifestyle habits.
Dr. Brett Osborn, a board-certified neurosurgeon in West Palm Beach, Florida, is also the founder of a preventative health care and anti-aging facility, Senolytix.
He works with patients to help them achieve a healthy weight, adopt better wellness habits and reduce their risk of chronic diseases such as obesity and diabetes.
“My motto is, you are never too young or too old for good health,” he said.
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In an interview with Fox News Digital, Osborn shared the five daily health habits he recommends to his patients to help them live longer, healthier lives.
1. Assume responsibility for your own health
While it’s important to consult with a health care professional as needed, Osborn emphasized that people should listen to their own bodies and identify potential risks.
In a discussion with Fox News Digital, Dr. Brett Osborn shared the five daily health habits he recommends to his patients to help them live longer, healthier lives. Some may be surprising. (iStock/Brett Osborn)
“In general, standard health surveillance for the average American is poor,” said Osborn, who holds a certification from the American Academy of Anti-Aging Medicine. “We simply are not aggressive enough in checking for and catching risk factors of fatal diseases.”
Most people aren’t proactive in discovering risks for themselves, he said — relying too much on their doctors or online health information.
“Don’t think that your doctor is going to find all your risk factors and save you from a heart attack or stroke — more often than not, that doesn’t happen,” he warned. “These are silent killers that can do their damage before someone experiences symptoms.”
“Don’t think that your doctor is going to find all your risk factors and save you from a heart attack or stroke — more often than not, that doesn’t happen.”
Given the prevalence of both high blood pressure and insulin resistance, Osborn recommends that everyone self-monitor at home for the early signs of these potentially deadly problems.
“People who wait for their annual check-up to find out what’s going on with their health are making a terrible mistake,” he said. “A lot can go wrong in the year or two between visits to the doctor, and lack of persistent attention or procrastination can kill you.”
2. Take these 6 blood tests — and take them seriously
The best way to prolong your life is to lower the risk of heart attack and stroke, according to Osborn — and the first step in doing so is identifying the risk factors.
Dr. Brett Osborn is a board-certified neurosurgeon in West Palm Beach, Florida, who has 15 years of experience in longevity medicine. (Dr. Brett Osborn)
“It is nearly impossible to achieve optimal health without taking intermittent snapshots of the inner workings of your body to guide you, which can be provided by laboratory testing that will accurately identify any and all risk factors,” Osborn said.
“Taking these tests early — and taking the results seriously — can save your life.”
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Osborn recommends implementing six blood tests to help prevent age-related diseases.
1. Lipid Profile. This test provides a rough idea of the ratio of “good” to “bad” cholesterol, he said.
2. Vertical Auto Profile (VAP). This is a cholesterol, lipid and lipoprotein test that measures all the components of a standard lipid profile and also delves further, segmenting cholesterol into sub-types.
Osborn works with patients to help them achieve a healthy weight, adopt better wellness habits and reduce their risk of chronic diseases like obesity and diabetes. (Dr. Brett Osborn)
“I would strongly consider VAP testing in lieu of the standard lipid profile if you have high blood pressure, diabetes or a family history of heart disease or stroke,” Osborn said.
“You may be surprised to learn that what was once deemed ‘normal’ in the standard lipid profile is far from it.”
3. C-Reactive Protein (CRP). Patients with obesity and metabolic syndrome have elevated CRP levels, which is a risk factor for coronary heart disease, hypertension, type 2 diabetes and atherogenic dyslipidemia, Osborn explained.
4. Homocysteine. “Elevations in homocysteine are associated with a variety of diseases, including heart attack, stroke, Alzheimer’s disease and osteoporosis,” Osborn said.
Osborn recommends regularly taking five blood tests to help prevent age-related diseases. (iStock)
5. Hemoglobin A1C. This test measures how well blood sugar levels have been controlled over weeks or months.
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“This test doesn’t lie,” Osborn said. “It is an average, a wide-angle lens, not an instantaneous snapshot like a fasting glucose level. You want this level to be as low as possible.”
6. Vitamin D3. There is evidence that Vitamin D3 deficiency is associated with stroke, insulin resistance, Alzheimer’s dementia, coronary artery disease and cancer, according to Osborn.
“Get this tested and intervene if necessary, as failure to do so will predispose you to a variety of diseases,” he warned.
3. Embrace these 10 supplements
Although supplements are not to be used as primary treatments for ailments, Osborn said, they can be used as a complement to a well-rounded diet and exercise regimen.
Osborn is founder of a preventative health care and anti-aging facility, Senolytix, in West Palm Beach, Florida. “The right supplement regime,” he said, “can optimize your health so that your hard work is maximized to its fullest potential.” (Dr. Brett Osborn)
“Supplements will not remedy your elevated blood sugar, blood pressure, gouty arthritis and hypertension — only you can. There is no easy way out,” Osborn said.
“The right supplement regime, however, can optimize your health so that your hard work is maximized to its fullest potential, and should be treated as equally important as the right food choices and fitness routines,” he added.
Although supplements are not to be used as primary treatments for ailments, Osborn said they can be used to complement a well-rounded diet and exercise regimen. (iStock)
Osborn recommends these top 10 nutritional supplements to help prevent free radical damage, oxidative stress and chronic inflammation, the main factors of age-related disease:
- Omega-3 fatty acids
- Resveratrol
- Green tea extract
- Vitamin D3
- Curcumin
- B-complex
- Vitamin C
- Vitamin E
- Magnesium
- Probiotics
“Supplements will not remedy your elevated blood sugar, blood pressure, gouty arthritis and hypertension — only you can. There is no easy way out.”
Osborn opts to skip multivitamins, he said, because “the dosages of the individual components are fairly low.”
4. Work your brain
Although it’s not a muscle, Osborn emphasized that the brain benefits from exercise, both mentally and physically.
“Physical exercise and critical thinking both forge neural pathways in the brain,” he said.
“There is a component of learning while exercising or working through mental challenges like puzzles, and this process of learning literally rewires the brain.”
Although it’s not a muscle, the brain benefits from exercise, both mentally and physically, said Osborn. (iStock)
“As we age, keeping the brain active through physical activity helps to prevent the progression of age-related atrophy,” he added.
Physical activity helps to form synapses, which are connections between neurons that help to reduce inflammation, reverse age-associated spatial memory loss and enhance learning, Osborn explained.
It also helps to prevent diseases like Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s, he added.
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“There is also evidence that augmented blood flow to the brain during exercise promotes neurogenesis (formation of new neurons in the brain),” he added. “Exercise can enhance both learning abilities and memory.”
Beyond physical activity, learning a new skill can also “turbo-charge” the brain, Osborn said.
5. Know your food’s glycemic index
Measuring your food’s glycemic index (GI) is a way of rating the impact it has on blood sugar and insulin, Osborn explained.
This knowledge can then be used to find and avoid hidden sugars.
Kidney beans, for example, have a glycemic index of 23, peanuts are rated at 7 and white rice is 89.
“Simply put, the sweeter the food, the higher the GI value,” Osborn said.
After eating low-GI foods, glucose increases only mildly, which means there is less insulin produced.
Measuring your food’s glycemic index (GI) is a way of rating the impact it has on blood sugar and insulin, Osborn noted. (iStock)
“Tight glycemic control is primarily a function of several interrelated factors, such as ingestion of low-GI foods, lean body mass and daily exercise,” Osborn explained.
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“While low-glycemic index carbohydrate consumption facilitates weight loss, eating your daily vegetables has far greater, life-extending effects,” he added.
It’s long been known that no amount of alcohol is good for the body — and now new research spotlights the potential harm it can cause.
More than 5% of all cancer cases are caused by drinking alcohol, according to the Cancer Progress Report 2024 from the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR).
Among the modifiable risk factors for cancer, alcohol is the third biggest, behind obesity (7.6% of cases) and cigarette smoking (19.3%).
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“Excessive levels of alcohol consumption increase the risk for six different types of cancer, including certain types of head and neck cancer, esophageal squamous cell carcinoma, and breast, colorectal, liver and stomach cancers,” said Rajarshi Sengupta, PhD, lead author of the AACR Cancer Progress Report 2024, in a statement sent to Fox News Digital.
More than 5% of all cancer cases are caused by drinking alcohol, according to the Cancer Progress Report 2024 from the American Association for Cancer Research. (iStock)
“Further, research shows that alcohol intake at an early age can increase the risk of cancer later in life.”
Based on these findings, limiting or eliminating alcohol can reduce the risk of developing alcohol-related cancers by 8% and the risk of all cancers by 4%, the report noted.
Addiction expert warns of risks
There has been a “roller coaster of information” about whether alcohol is harmful, according to addiction psychiatrist Dr. Adam Scioli of Caron Treatment Centers in Pennsylvania.
“There have even been reports for years that it could be beneficial for one’s health — but we know now that alcohol ingestion is one of the modifiable risk factors for cancer,” Scioli, who is not affiliated with AACR, told Fox News Digital.
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Around 75,000 Americans each year are diagnosed with a cancer that is linked in some way to alcohol use, according to Scioli.
The more someone drinks — both in volume and frequency — the higher the risk, he warned.
Among the modifiable risk factors for cancer, alcohol is the third biggest, behind obesity (7.6% of cases) and cigarette smoking (19.3%). (iStock)
“Alcohol is a toxin,” Scioli said.
“We’ve long known that it impacts any number of organs, essentially starting with the brain and working its way down to the colorectal system.”
Is there a ‘safe’ amount?
Moderate alcohol use is defined as one drink or less in one day for women.
For men, it is two drinks or fewer per day, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
“We’ve long known that alcohol impacts any number of organs, starting with the brain and working its way down to the colorectal system.”
“Drinking alcohol in moderation may increase your overall risks of death and chronic disease,” the agency stated on its website.
“Even low levels of alcohol use (less than one drink per day) can raise the risk of certain cancers.”
Scioli agreed, emphasizing that “we can definitely say there’s no added health benefit to ingestion of alcohol.”
“The line between safety and danger is debatable, and is different for each person.”
While risk factors like tobacco use are widely known, public awareness about the link between alcohol and cancer is still low, according to Sengupta.
Moderate alcohol use is defined as one drink or less in one day for women, and two drinks or fewer for men, per the CDC. (iStock)
Most Americans (51%) are not aware that alcohol increases cancer risk, per AACR data.
“It’s been flying under the radar for far too long — especially given the number of Americans who have met the criteria for alcohol use disorder, which is around 29 million Americans in 2023,” said Scioli.
What needs to change?
The good news, according to Scioli, is that with modifiable risk factors like alcohol, reducing the intake decreases the risk.
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As the report stated, those who are successful in decreasing their drinking or abstaining below those moderate risk levels will see a risk reduction in overall cancers, he noted.
Around 75,000 Americans each year are diagnosed with a cancer that is linked in some way to alcohol use, an expert said. (iStock)
“We need to do a much better job of making the public aware of the risks inherent in drinking — particularly moderate to heavy drinking,” Scioli said.
“And we need to make the public aware that there are mechanisms by which they can access help if they are unable to moderate their drinking or quit on their own.”
For more Health articles, visit www.foxnews.com/health
To help raise awareness, Sengupta of the AACR called for public messaging campaigns, “such as cancer-specific warning labels displayed on alcoholic beverages.”
Along with that, she told Fox News Digital, “effective clinical strategies that reduce or eliminate alcohol consumption must be considered to reduce the burden of alcohol-related cancers.”
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Intermittent Fasting + Walking: The Science-Backed Combo That Helped This Grandma Lose 3X the Weight
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A new drug has been approved for the treatment of schizophrenia in adults.
On Thursday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved COBENFY (xanomeline and trospium chloride), an oral medication that is manufactured by Bristol Myers Squibb in New Jersey.
This marks the first new class of medications for the brain disorder in several decades, according to a press release.
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COBENFY is expected to be available in the U.S. in late October, the company noted.
A new drug has been approved for the treatment of schizophrenia in adults. (iStock)
“Today’s landmark approval of our first-in-class treatment for schizophrenia marks an important milestone for the community, where after more than 30 years, there is now an entirely new pharmacological approach for schizophrenia — one that has the potential to change the treatment paradigm,” said Chris Boerner, PhD, board chair and chief executive officer at Bristol Myers Squibb, in the press release.
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Schizophrenia is a serious mental illness that affects a person’s thoughts, feelings and behaviors.
It often causes hallucinations, delusions, disordered speech and loss of touch with reality, Mayo Clinic states on its website.
COBENFY (xanomeline and trospium chloride) is an oral medication that is manufactured by Bristol Myers Squibb in New Jersey. (Bristol Myers Squibb)
The disorder can also lead to lack of emotional expression, lack of motivation, cognitive dysfunction and social withdrawal.
Approximately 2.8 million people in the U.S. and 24 million people globally are living with schizophrenia.
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The disorder has traditionally been treated with antipsychotic medications, but around 40% of patients do not respond to treatments and 60% experience “inadequate improvement” in symptoms or “intolerable side effects,” studies have shown.
COBENFY is expected to be available in the U.S. in late October, the company noted. (Bristol Myers Squibb)
COBENFY works differently than the currently available schizophrenia medications.
“Due to its heterogeneous nature, schizophrenia is not a one-size-fits-all condition, and people often find themselves in a cycle of discontinuing and switching therapies,” said Rishi Kakar, MD, chief scientific officer and medical director at Segal Trials and investigator in the drug’s clinical trials, in the release.
“Schizophrenia is not a one-size-fits-all condition, and people often find themselves in a cycle of discontinuing and switching therapies.”
“The approval of COBENFY is a transformative moment in the treatment of schizophrenia because, historically, medicines approved to treat schizophrenia have relied on the same primary pathways in the brain.”
“By leveraging a novel pathway, COBENFY offers a new option to manage this challenging condition.”
“Today’s landmark approval of our first-in-class treatment for schizophrenia marks an important milestone for the community,” said Chris Boerner, PhD, board chair and chief executive officer at Bristol Myers Squibb. (iStock)
Sam Clark, founder and CEO at Terran Biosciences — a biotech company that develops treatments and technologies for neurological and psychiatric diseases in New York City — commented on the new approval in a statement sent to Fox News Digital.
“I am excited that the FDA has just approved [COBENFY] as a treatment for patients with schizophrenia, marking a big leap forward in the psychiatry space,” he said.
“These patients live with a difficult disease, and this drug with a novel mechanism of action will surely make a significant impact,” Clark continued.
“We look forward to seeing the renaissance continue as this approval paves the way for future breakthroughs and novel patient-focused therapeutics.”
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The approval follows three phases of clinical trials in which COBENFY was shown to result in a “statistically significant improvement in illness.”
Schizophrenia is a serious mental illness that affects a person’s thoughts, feelings and behaviors and often causes hallucinations and delusions. (iStock)
In terms of safety, the medication’s most common side effects during clinical trials were nausea, indigestion, vomiting, diarrhea, constipation, hypertension, abdominal pain, accelerated heart rate, dizziness and gastroesophageal reflux disease, the release stated.
Patients with certain existing medical conditions may experience other, more serious risks.
For more Health articles, visit www.foxnews.com/health
People should discuss potential complications with a doctor before starting the medication.
Fox News Digital reached out to Bristol Myers Squibb and the Schizophrenia & Psychosis Action Alliance requesting comment.
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