We’re all born with youthful energy. As kids and young adults, this energy helps fuel us as with build lives for ourselves and our families, be they our close relatives or any children we might have. But over time, that energy fades. Our health, our looks, and our overall energy for living fades. It is an inescapable fact of life.
One of my old health teachers once summed it up with this endearing quote that I remember to this day.
“Once your body is done growing, it starts dying. The only part you can control is how rapidly that process unfolds.”
This has become more and more relevant for me, personally. I am no longer young by most measures. My teenage years and my early 20s feel like a lifetime ago. Who I was then is very different from who I am now. And while I have gotten much better at taking care of myself since I turned 30, I know that’s just slowing the aging process. It doesn’t stop it.
At some point, my body and mind will start to break down.
At some point, I’ll start succumbing to the many ailments often associated with age.
I am not looking forward to that. I prefer to delay that as much as possible. I’ve always been somewhat self-conscious about my looks and my health. I don’t deny that the prospect of aging is scary to me. That’s one of the reasons I often keep a close eye on advancements in biotechnology. And with each passing year, I also find myself paying more attention to advances in the fields of longevity.
I know there are many conflicting perspectives when it comes to body image, beauty standards, and the idea of aging gracefully. For everyone in human history, you didn’t really have a choice. You just had to accept that you were going to get older. Your looks, your energy, and your body was going to fade. But if this technology is able to mature, there might be other options in the future.
Whether or not I’ll live long enough to take advantage of those opportunities, it’s hard to say. It may already be too late for someone my age. Even if new treatments emerge, there’s a good chance they’ll be reserved for the rich and well-connected. Unless I win the lottery, I doubt I’ll be in a position to utilize them.
But that might not be the case for my nieces and nephews, who are still young children at the moment. It might not even be the case for those just graduating college at the moment. In the same way artificial intelligence has had a sudden surge of advancement, longevity might experience a similar surge, thanks in no small part to AI.
As I write this, science has uncovered so much about the mechanics of aging. We know considerably more today than we did 20 years ago. We’re sure to uncover more in the coming years. At some point, we may even develop effective treatments that don’t just slow aging. We might find a way to actually reverse it.
This sort of technology isn’t some far-off sci-fi fantasy on par with a warp drive. Reversing aging doesn’t break the laws of physics. It doesn’t even break the laws of biology, given how some animals never seem to age. It’s just a matter of developing the right tools, the right treatments, and the right approach. I have no idea what form that will take. I doubt it will be something as simple as a pill, an injection, or something you could buy at a pharmacy.
But if such a treatment were available, it’s worth asking how much you’d be willing to risk in order to take advantage of it. Because, like any emerging medicine, there is risk early on. When something is unproven in the long-term, you will be putting your mind and body at risk by embracing it so quickly. Even if it’s tested to a point where very major health organization gives it the thumbs-up, there’s always a chance something could go wrong. That’s just how medicine and biology works.
Some people might not be willing to take that risk.
For me personally, I totally would. Even if my health and appearance is generally good, I would definitely take a chance at a treatment that would help preserve both for a longer period. I would certainly expect side-effects. But if it delivers good results, I’ll endure those.
But there’s also the cost to consider. Even if a treatment is shown to be effective at keeping you feeling young, beautiful, and energetic, it doesn’t do you much good if it costs you every penny you have and then some. Sure, you’d have your youth and your looks, but you’d be broke and in debt. Is that worth it?
Personally, I wouldn’t be willing to spend everything or go that deep into debt, just to look young and remain healthy. Few good things ever come from indebting yourself to that extent.
But others might feel differently. Some might not want that kind of longevity, even if it were available. That’s perfectly fine. We should certainly respect anyone who makes such a choice. But we should also put real thought and effort into attacking aging the same way we attack any disease. Regardless of how we age or how we choose to approach it, we’re subject to the chaotic ravages of time.
Emerging technology will give us more options than we’ve ever had at any point in our existence as a species. How we choose to exercise those options remains to be seen. I might not get that choice. But I sincerely hope that some reading this do.
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