Throughout the last decade the anti-ageing industry has been booming. Recent scientific discoveries have revealed the possibility of slowing down the ageing process is becoming a reality. Everybody knows the benefits of a healthy lifestyle, a low calorie diet, non-smoking, and regular physical exercise are the three pillars on which health is built. Though with the recent studies in genomics and growing importance of bio-informatics, we will probably soon see genome based diet and gym recommendations, it is not purely scientific yet but we are on the way.

What else do we have to support the idea of productive longevity? Beginning with the ‘outer look’ we should mention plastic surgery and cosmetology. Modern cosmetology is a way to treat skin rather that to musk defects and doctors in cosmetology use all the latest skin care products. We believe cosmetology has become difficult and aggressive and should be performed only by specially trained certified physicians; the same goes for plastic surgery as the industry is now very advanced. Modern plastic surgeons must have excellent knowledge of anatomy and outstanding surgical skills as well as a good understanding of modern biomedicine in order to take advantage of the benefits given by cellular products and biological agents.

Obviously ‘look’ is important but productive longevity is even more important, people want not only to look great but also feel great — stay active physically and mentally. Three major trends in biological medicine outside of biomechanical engineering are stem cells such as induced pluripotent stem cells (IPSCs),  subcellular bioactive substances — peptides and growth factors, and so called geroprotectors — drugs with a supposed positive effect on longevity.

The aim of peptides and other stimulating substances is to offer a boost to the human body, hopefully without using its non-restoring resources. Geroprotectors aim to modulate cellular processes with respect to both anabolic and catabolic parts. This is a relatively new approach that needs to be proved by evidence based medicine. As of today there are about 150 pharmaceuticals with a high possibility of a positive influence on life expectancy.

There are also other means of fine tuning the human body. One example is electrical stimulation of the brain, which is showing positive results during the recovery process after cardiovascular accidents and injuries. In experimental work it was shown that electrical impulses have an effect on neurogenesis; this in itself is a very important discovery as showing neural cells repair was previously considered to be impossible. Another interesting method is enhanced external contropulsation that helps to build up new vessels. These methods have shown themselves as prominent means for rehabilitation medicine and are now considered as methods that may play a role for productive longevity. The problem is that direct proof of life prolongation by either method is hard if not impossible to gather. We face quite a challenge overcoming this problem, meaning years if not decades of research. One thing we know for sure — we are on the right track, proven by the many experimental and analytical studies.