What You Should Know for Skin Longevity and Aesthetics with Dr. Stephanie Manson Brown

Hello and welcome to the Longevity and Lifestyle Podcast. I'm Claudia von Boeselager, your host. The podcast is where I invite pioneers and thought leaders in their respective fields to give us the strategies, tools, and practices to live better and reach our true human potential. Today's guest is Dr. Stephanie Manson-Brown, a board-certified surgeon specialized in plastic surgery and one of the few physicians in the longevity space who wears several hats as a medical doctor, scientist, and business executive with Allergan Aesthetics, an AbbVie company. Stephanie is also the co-founder of the Science of Aging Symposium, which was born out of a desire to bring the latest developments in the field of aging science to the aesthetics arena and explore how these discoveries could potentially translate to aesthetic medicine. Stephanie is passionate about finding ways to target the pathways of aging to support and equip people to live and work longer and have a positive impact on their healthspan. In this episode, we discuss the psychological benefits of aesthetic treatment, how Stephanie sees the present and future of the longevity and anti-aging market, as well as her views of the development of aesthetic treatments. We also talk about her experience in the longevity space, her journey to where she is today as a unique medical doctor, scientist, and business executive. Stephanie is a true visionary in her field, and I'm sure you'll find her advice as valuable as I have. Before we begin, please subscribe to the podcast to get your weekly dose of longevity inspiration and leave a comment to let me know what you think.. I would love to hear from you. Thank you, and please enjoy.

Welcome to the Longevity and Lifestyle Podcast, Stephanie. It's a real pleasure to have you on today. Thank you.

Well, thank you so much for inviting me. I'm absolutely delighted to be part of your podcast series.

Thank you so much, and I love the fact that we're wearing matching colors today, so clearly very coordinated. Absolutely, absolutely. Stephanie, I'd like to start with the rare fact that you are one of the few physicians in the longevity space who wears several hats as a medical doctor, scientist and business executive. Can you talk about this and how you wear so many hats?

Well, first of all, I don't think it really dawned on me until recently, and this was actually picked up by Alex M. Zarenovkov, who was interviewing me for Forbes magazine recently. And he was the one who suggested that I should actually take a step back and recognize that. So, you know, from that point of view, yes, there's not many of us. However, I do think that there's certainly a building number of us, and it's something that really has kind of happened to a degree with serendipity. I am a plastic surgeon, so I was training to be a plastic surgeon. I left the clinical practice side of things, goodness, probably around about 12, 13, maybe a little bit longer years ago. I blank it out, I think now, just given the fact that it seems to be building that number. And I left for a number of reasons and then joined the pharmaceutical industry. And at the time it was a difficult decision to suddenly change track and no longer be pursuing a career in plastic surgery. It was quite a significant impact and and, you know, deeply impacted me and deeply affected me. So, and I, I left due to the situation and the training structure that they had changed. And I was training within the National Health Service. So that took me on a different path and a different journey. And at the time, joining the pharmaceutical industry was still a little bit of an unknown and a big uncertainty. And, you know, really what kind of drew me to it was that I could still use my scientific knowledge. And still use my medical experience, which is really key. And I think utilizing your medical experience is so important because it really does allow us to fully understand the patient's perspective, the patient's journey. We also understand our fellow physicians who are practicing. We understand the complexities, the pressure that they're under, and really the need to be able to translate science into understandable terms and really help to provide the context as well as the evidence behind the different treatment options that you're offering to your patients. So it really helps to be able to have that background and that insight to be able to connect and communicate with our physicians as well as understanding where our patients are coming from. So I made that jump and then went through different opportunities with different companies. And so I've worked in diabetes and I also worked in hand surgery, actually working on a product for Dupuytren's. When I was at Pfizer. And then I started with Allergan, which was Allergan at the time. We've now been acquired by AbbVie and joined the aesthetic medicine group, which was something that at the time of leaving plastic surgery, I never thought I'd get the opportunity to go back into an area within industry that really spoke to my experience. And then the longevity piece has really just come about relatively recently. I mean, my interest in longevity medicine was really sparked by attending a lot of the aesthetic medicine conferences that are very much, you know, focused at dermatologists and plastic surgeons. And really, for me, there was just, I guess, a lack of really kind of understanding or a lack of presentations and focus of science looking at the actual mechanisms of the aesthetic progress as it relates to the aging process. And it was something that I thought, you know, there's definitely a need here to be able to bring the two together.. And from that side of things, I started just doing a little bit of background research into longevity medicine, which has been, you know, the aging science research area has been growing quite rapidly in the last 5 years. But you know, there's been individuals continuing to research this area for decades now. So there was a whole plethora of very intriguing avenues as it relates to understanding better the human biology and, and the process of aging. So for me, there was an obvious link with aesthetics. And I think that it really is an opportunity to better educate our doctors and our injectors who are focusing on treating people who are showing signs of aging. And really, you know, I do believe that we're going to move away from treating the signs and symptoms of aging and actually start to focus on the root cause.

It's such an exciting time and such an exciting space. And it sounds like you have the perfect background where you really bring together all these different aspects. So really fantastic. There's a study which you'll know by Levy et al. from 2002 on individuals who reported positive self-perceptions of aging and that they lived longer, and those who reported negative self-perceptions of aging on average die 7.5 years before those who are positive, which is just incredible. So I'd love to hear your view on research into the psychological benefit of aesthetic treatments.

Yeah, so I mean, that study that you just referenced there, I mean, is fascinating, isn't it? And I think that that really, you know, is looking at positive psychology and really had the impacts on positive aging. And, you know, I think that this is where at the moment there isn't necessarily the connection of, and positive psychology related to aesthetic treatment that has then an impact on the longevity piece or the overall positive aging. However, you know, as a company, we are continuing to focus researching the psychological and psychosocial benefits of aesthetic treatments and really how that impacts people's lives and really impacts their quality of life. You know, we are continuing to look at ways that we can improve people's self-confidence, for example, people's self-esteem and the general different modules relating to quality of life. And so this is something that we're continuing to build on a plethora and a wealth of data to be able to demonstrate this. Now, the actual connection then as it relates to positive aging hasn't been made, but I think this is certainly something that will be an important area for future research and really kind of as we kind of start to understand the connection with this, the positive psychology as it relates to aging. So the, the study that you mentioned is one example, but there's a number of studies that are showing that there's a consensus that positive self-perceptions of aging can play an important role in sustaining social engagement and have positive effects on self-esteem and wellbeing, and even boosting biophysical function. We also know that social interaction, that social connection is important for longevity.

Yes, the Harvard study since 1938, on a separate podcast recording, we discussed it as well. And yeah, it's really key. Stephanie, do you have any specific advice for my audience on how to augment aesthetics to look and feel younger?

So I personally prefer the idea of maintaining healthy skin as a different concept to the notion of actually looking younger. And I believe that the future focus of application of treatments will be maintenance of health, where the benefits will build up over time. And I think that that's something that, you know, the whole industry at large is definitely guilty of talking of this drive to look youthful, to look younger. And I think that there's just a lot to be said of kind of focusing on biological age versus chronological age. And I know in previous podcasts you've discussed that with your other guests, and that's really something that at the moment we still continue to be, especially in the aesthetics industry. Focused on chronological age. And I think that that can have very much a negative impact on individuals. Whereas actually, you know, aging is a privilege and some people actually do want to embrace growing older, but I think it's for us to give the options to be able to bring in interventions to at least be aging in a more healthy manner and also maintaining that skin health and maintaining that health as it relates to skin aging. So like any form of aging, skin aging varies and varies from individual to individual. And it probably very much reflects the mosaic tissue aging. And we know that there are multiple factors that affect skin aging. So as skin is the outermost protective layer of the body, it is exposed to both intrinsic— so internal factors, for example, genetic, metabolic, and endocrine factors— as well as extrinsic— so external factors such as ultraviolet UV radiation, environmental pollution, and smoking. So all of those different factors really kind of are, you know, build up and have an influence on the overall aging process as it relates to skin biology. So it's also, we know that it's the most perceptible organ to show the initial signs of aging. So that's when people do tend to notice that you see the fine lines, you see the skin laxity, and as well as the wrinkles, as well as aging spots. Which is pigmentation. And also you see that loss of elasticity and loss of smoothness. So I think, you know, with regards to kind of advice about what we can do, there's several ways to maintain healthy skin. And you can look at them both as the kind of the general approaches for improved healthspan. And again, you've discussed this on previous podcasts, but, you know, just for your audience, when we talk about healthspan, we talk about putting the life into our years. And so instead of kind of expanding necessarily lots of years onto the lifespan, it's about ensuring that we've got a healthy life within kind of living into our later decades and improving overall quality of life. And so this, I think, can be also looked at for skin health. So for example, good quality sleep is one of the key fundamentals, and we know that chronic inadequate and poor quality sleep accelerates intrinsic aging, and poor sleepers have significantly diminished capacity to recover from stress. And we know that there is significantly diminished capacity as it relates to recovering from exogenous stressors such as epidermal barrier disruption and UV-induced erythema. We also know that potentially blood flow to is strongly promoted by sleep and that this phase of dilation actually may be a way for the body to facilitate the distribution of endogenous defense agents. And, you know, the sleep and I guess your appearance after sleep is important. There was a study conducted by a group in Sweden that looked at restricted sleep and how that can affect facial appearance. And so they actually found that it— and no surprises— but it actually negatively impacts facial appearance and decreases others' willingness to actually socialize with the sleep-restricted person. So I think that that's something, you know, certainly kind of hit me. I'm really bad at making sure that I have my 8 hours a day or 8 hours within 24 hours. So it kind of was something that really struck me. And we know that social engagement is really important factor for promoting longevity as well. So all of this just very much interplays. And so you cannot ignore this body of evidence to see that good quality of sleep actually impacts good health generally, but it also impacts longevity and it impacts your skin health as well.

That's super important. I'd love to ask you a question on that because I've also discovered— I mean, I spent my teens and twenties thinking, you know, on 3 hours of sleep, I can still be a rock star the next day, no problem. I've got tons of energy. And sadly, those days have come to an end. So I do definitely notice if I haven't got enough sleep and I wear the Oura ring, right? So I can do sleep tracking. Is there evidence in the study Is it about the length of sleep? Because obviously there's a difference between the length of sleep and the quality of sleep, right? So how much deep sleep are you getting? How much REM sleep? How much light sleep? Have they broken down the study to understand you actually should get so-and-so many hours of, let's say, deep sleep, which is more restorative versus REM? Have they looked at those metrics as well?

So not that I know of, not to actually link it to skin health and skin biology. So this was more kind of looking at some of the kind of the underpinning mechanisms of the reduced sleep as it relates to not having that ability and the capacity capacity to be able to combat and repair following stress. However, I think that's a great study, and I know that the study of sleep and the impact of sleep is a huge big area that's then really great gaining traction and really being able to understand the fundamentals from that perspective. So I think that would be really interesting to link that to skin health and skin biology. So it's a great question, and I think that's something that definitely should open up for further research.

Yeah, you guys can maybe pair with Aura or something like that and see, uh, if you want better skin health, you have to make sure you get your 2.5, whatever, 3 hours depending on your age of deep sleep and more restorative sleep. And how do you hack that as well? So yeah, let me know if you need any participants for a trial.

I'll join.

Absolutely.

Absolutely. But then, I mean, obviously, I mean, sleep's important and I think, you know, the purpose of mentioning that is I think there's so many different aspects that we look at generally, um, improving our health from a longevity point of view. But of course we do need to focus on what's important for targeting skin health as well. So I think a good skincare regimen is really important. We know that there is a lot of increasing evidence out there, but there's also a lot of people speaking to it. And I think one of my suggestions is make sure that you're always looking to the science behind some of the claims that are being made around products. There's a lot of talk around demonstrating the efficacy and the benefits of the active ingredient, but it doesn't necessarily look at the actual product that is being promoted. And so that's something that's really important as well as when we look at clinical trial data. It's all very well looking at the biology and the impact from a biological perspective in biology as it relates to preclinical studies where it may be being done in the lab in vitro, as well as potential animal modeling as well. But it is very, very important to look at how that translates to the clinic and actually translates to the individuals and the, the patient populations from a clinical trial perspective. So kind of looking at the principles with regards to skincare regimen. And so There's some basic principles that apply to all ages, but obviously as you get older, your needs will change as your aging process takes impact on your skin. I think one of the important things to note is the earlier you start to take measures to reduce the impact of damage and inflammation, the better. And I think that's really kind of the big factors here is the inflammatory elements impacting, you know, I guess tissue and organ health generally. But speaking here about skin health, there's been a lot of discussion around protecting against ultraviolet radiation, UVA and UVB.. So therefore, and it's now common knowledge that it is of good practice to be using a high broad spectrum sunscreen from an SPF 30 or above daily. And that's critical. And you need to remember to keep reapplying it as well. I think that there's a kind of a misconception that once you put it on in the morning and then you've sorted for the day, that is not true. There's a term that I've seen quite a lot posted on dermatologists' Instagram posts, for example, but the best way to have great looking skin in your 50s and 60s and beyond is to apply sunscreen in your 20s. I think that that's a good mantra to apply. There's reasons for this. I mean, we know that UVA radiation from sunlight causes a reduction in collagen content and the breakdown of the elastin fibers. So this leads to kind of a wasting away the extracellular matrix. And this is an essential part of your skin architecture because the extracellular matrix actually provides the mechanical support for tissues and is involved in the growth mechanism, regenerative, and in healing processes. So it's very important to protect that. Mm-hmm. And then UVB radiation further causes elastic fiber breakdown as well, causing the skin to sag. And UV radiation also causes mitochondrial DNA damage and oxidative stress, which then leads to photoaging. So very important to be looking at how we can protect ourselves against UV radiation. But then topical application of sunscreens doesn't offer complete protection against UV damage. And we know that antioxidants can play a major role in the prevention and also therapy of UV skin aging. So antioxidants— and again, there's a lot of information out there about antioxidants, but they neutralize the free radicals and thus can help to inhibit inflammation and offer protection against photo damage. And so some of the better-known antioxidants that are used in skincare are, for example, vitamin C and B3 vitamin, which is nicotinamide, I can say there. And so, and the skin is the primary interface between our body and external environment. So therefore you also need to be looking at protecting this physiological barrier and, you know, making sure that it is hydrated. So one of our speakers at the Science of Aging Symposium a couple of years ago, Dr. Balaki, he actually talked about the fact that the pollution can cause a lot of damage to our skin. So the exposure of the skin to air pollutants. Alters the function of epidermal proteins and damages lipids and DNA. And that can also lead to an array of different skin disorders. So therefore, we do need to be looking at how we can be protecting the skin barrier. So, and that's really looking at hydrating serums and moisturizers, really acts like an extra barrier in the skin, stopping water and content from escaping. So all these three factors are really important for us to be kind of taking into account to help protect the skin from damage.

Great advice. I think, you know, there's so much information out there, and as you said as well, it's always looking at the science behind things. What is your daily skincare routine? A lot of my listeners would be interested.

I actually had to kind of reduce the number of products I was using because I actually noticed that I was actually getting— and I think it's probably due to stress, which is something we also need to be avoiding. I mean, there's a lot of data out there to demonstrate that small amounts of stress are good and help to, you know, both from a neural pathways point of view, as well as kind of, I guess, stimulating cells to be able to have better survival mechanisms, let's say, which then also plays into longevity. But I noticed that I was actually developing adult acne. So I've reduced and pared down my skincare regimen. So I pretty much start with making sure that I have a good cleanser and then followed by toner, and then I apply serum. And so at the moment I make sure that I include a serum that includes antioxidants as well as looking at hydrating serums. So I think serums that include HA, for example, are a great opportunity and allow to kind of, as I say, protect the water loss that you experience via the epidermis. And I think the other thing to say, and one of the companies that I'm very interested actually came and presented at the Science of Aging last year, and they're actually incorporating their research into Understanding Cellular Senescence. And I think you've had Carolina on your podcast.

Yes, from OneSkin.

And I use her products every day.

Yeah, excellent.

Always wonder. Yeah, no, absolutely. So I'm very interested in their skincare products that they are investing in and putting the research behind because I think it very much speaks to how we can apply the aging research to skin health. And so they're looking at ways that they can actually potentially leverage, as I say, They've got a peptide that impacts the cellular senescence cycle and therefore can reduce the inflammation to the skin. So I think there's lots of different, you know, growing opportunities as it relates to incorporating skin products for better skin health.

It's exciting times. Yeah. And I love the product as well. You notice a noticeable difference. From a high-level perspective, can you talk about some of the areas you are researching and with a focus on longevity and aesthetics? And what are you most excited about?

So therapies to reduce or prevent aging of sun-exposed skin have been present for decades, and but now with the increasing understanding of the basic science underlying aging, this is now shedding light on the mechanisms of established treatments and identifying new treatment targets and methods. And this is an avenue that we're actively pursuing as we shape the future of aesthetic medicine at Allergan Aesthetics. So we're advancing our skin aging research at the minute with a continued focus on gaining more in-depth understanding of how different mechanisms, for example the or transcriptomics or epigenetics, really kind of get a better understanding of the different pathways associated with those areas and understand their complex interplay. And then understand really the impact at the cellular molecular levels, which will then help us better understand how that translates into the phenotypes. And that, you know, is really kind of understanding how appearance results from the interaction of the genotype, for example, and the environment.

And for somebody that's a little bit less science-y, can you break that down in a way that they might understand the implication of what you're looking to do?

I mean, it's, it's really exciting, but someone who maybe doesn't understand the science so much. Yeah, absolutely. So it kind of goes back to this point that I made earlier about the fact that there are intrinsic and extrinsic, so internal and external factors that impact aging and the aging process, as well as obviously our skin aging process.. And so really, you know, what we're trying to do is really understand all of those different factors and kind of understand how the impact then affects the overall appearance. So when we talk about phenotype, that's basically the way that you manifest all of those different factors and then manifest in your own exterior appearance. And that's obviously very important then for us from a skin biology perspective. So it's really kind of understanding the interplay, for example, with your DNA, Understanding the epigenetics and basically how your DNA is expressed, as well as the different elements that may kind of then influence that. And, you know, as we've discussed previously, the environmental factors are really key. And so that's gonna be very significant with regards to the skin type that you have, where you live. For example, if you are more, you know, exposed to UV damage or UV radiation, let's say, as well as pollution. And we're also very interested in better understanding where ethnicity plays a role in that as well. So in essence, it's almost, you could say that, you know, looking at this personalized medicine type approach, how does all of these different factors, you know, impact the aging process, then translate to individuals. And then how can we then find better ways to target those processes to be able to find ways to potentially slow down the process of aging? People talk about reversing aging as well. And I think that that's very exciting. I think that Certainly we're a little bit away from doing that, but I think it's certainly an area that is beginning to have increased understanding of how that could potentially be impacted.

It is really exciting. And I think also something you mentioned before, obviously the sooner you start, the better, right? So it's really prevention is the best cure. I mean, even from, I had Dr. Dale Bredesen on as well for Alzheimer's, right? So it's addressing things early, but also skin health and keeping that youthfulness to it.

Also.

I'd love to change gears a little bit and talk about the Science of Aging conference. You touched on that briefly, which is a conference that you co-founded, and it's one of the largest aging research conferences focused on dermatology and aesthetic medicine. Can you talk more about why you co-founded this and the types of conversations you have?

Absolutely. Thank you for bringing it up. It's a really— I guess you could call it a passion project. So the Science of Aging is a platform that really was born out of the desire to bring the latest developments of the field of aging and longevity science to the aesthetics arena and explore how these discoveries could be potentially translated into aesthetic medicine. And I think, you know, now we know, understand that there are the basic principles underlying the aging process. And so therefore it makes perfect sense to be able to then apply that to skin aging and tissue aging as it relates to kind of the, the more the exterior aesthetics perspective. And one of the main drivers really was that I was attending a lot of conferences. I think I mentioned this earlier where, you know, there was just a bit of a paucity as it relates to basic science. And so aesthetic conferences tended to kind of be more looking at, you know, how to treat the signs and symptoms of aging and talking about injection training and talking to the ideal ways to identify ways to then look at, you know, treating, as I say, the symptoms of aging. And so there was definitely a gap there. And it's something that I, I thought actually there's a really big opportunity here to be able to bring these two fields together. And so really the first platform of this kind where we do bring luminaries and experts in the field of longevity and aging science that come with their discoveries, their innovative research and their findings and present it to a group where we are mainly focused in and the platform is open to healthcare professionals and academics, and it's not open to the public, unfortunately, but it is open to healthcare professionals and academics who really have got an interest in understanding more about the process and the mechanisms behind aging and really want to kind of understand where the opportunities for the future really lie. So, you know, I think we know, and like many other disciplines, there's been a lot of focus at the kind of the endpoint of the disease process or the pathogenesis physiology as it relates to the different conditions. And I think skin aging is something as well where we have very much been looking at the end result rather than looking at what is involved in the actual physiological steps in relation to that. So it's really exciting. It's something that we're now going into a third year. Congratulations. Yeah, thank you. Thank you. And, you know, we continually are building on an incredible faculty. We really have had and are going to be having this year some incredible speakers and presenters who really, as I say, are the experts in their field. And I think what's interesting is that skin's often used as a model to be able to translate some of the findings that are seen in the lab. And so there are a lot of skin-based, cell-based models that help to be able to, as I say, translate some of the initial findings. There's going to be an increased focus at seeing how some of the initial discoveries can translate into to skin biology. And what we also do is we bring in some of our experts from the aesthetic medicine arena. So we have some well-known individuals who are there to help moderate the sessions and really kind of bring and translate the science to kind of something that is more translatable to our audience as it relates to their patients, to better understand how we can be looking to the future and how this can be translated into the future.

It sounds very exciting. Congratulations on founding it and being 3 years strong and running. Thank you. Where do you see the longevity and anti-aging market now, but also what exciting developments do you see coming in the next, say, 3 to 5 years?

I think firstly I have to just say, in my opinion, I'm not a big fan of the word anti-aging, although it is used very widespread, both in the longevity space as well as in the aesthetics industry. I think from my perspective, it does imply quite a negative connotation as it relates to aging.. And I think we should be looking at, as I mentioned earlier, about maintaining healthy status holistically and finding ways to support the healthy aging. I think, you know, we certainly can see aging as being a privilege. And I think it's something that, you know, there's more and more people wanting to actually be recognized and see aging as something that is not to be feared. And I think also that there's so much that you can see, or I guess put around the positive aspect of aging and its experience, its wisdom. It's about, you know, looking at every day as an opportunity to expand your learning. And I think certainly as an industry, the aesthetic industry quite often gets criticized with regards to potentially putting forward this unachievable concept of beauty. And even beauty in itself is a whole different discussion as to what do we actually mean by beauty? And it's influenced by so many different variable, um, aspects. So that's kind of just something that I think, you know, from my perspective, it's about looking at how we can be slowing down aging rather than, you anti, against aging and looking at ways that we can better maintain health so that we are much healthier in the later decades. And I think longevity medicine is the future. I mean, we've seen so many and there's lots of statistics out there really kind of to be able to express that. I mean, we know that in the mainstay populations in the world are getting older. In 2020, the global population aged 60 years and over was just over 1 billion people and which represents 13.5% of the world's population of 7.8 billion, and that number is 2.5 times greater than it was in 1980. So I think, you know, this projection is kind of this expansion, and I think, you know, the number who are going to be over 60, or being 60 and over, is going to reach nearly 2.1 billion by 2050. That's what the numbers are predicting. So it's a complex area. I think there's something that we definitely need to be addressing. We need to be addressing it proactively, and I think, you know, And that's why we have great podcasts like yours to really kind of highlight and bring awareness to it and, and really demonstrate that there's measures that individuals can be taking as well as looking at some of the research that's taking place to identify different avenues as it can relate to, as you mentioned, Alzheimer's disease and hopefully making that a thing of the past. And I think, you know, ultimately understanding the aging process and the inflammation associated with aging. To be honest, there's so many different things. To be excited about. And from my point of view, there's, I guess, from a skin aging research point of view, I think there's definitely, I've noticed a growth of startup companies starting to look in this area, for example. And I think that there's lots of opportunities that are coming through different groups. Last year we had OneSkin come onto the Science of Aging and Alessandra Zanori, she is the science officer. She came on and presented their initial data. They're a group of 4 female scientists and they've identified the peptide that suggests that it could reduce the accumulation of DNA damage and then prevent cellular senescence. And senescence is really kind of the process where the cells start to— they go into this phase where they are almost in, in essence asleep and they stop dividing, and that can then have an impact and cause inflammation. And so their topical product is very interesting and they've certainly been starting to translate what they've found in the lab into clinical data. And certainly the early clinical data is very interesting in that fact that it looks like perhaps that their product actually improves skin smoothness and also can have an impact in reducing fine lines. So I think what they're doing at the minute is very interesting, and I think the whole area of senescence has got a lot of interest. I mean, there's been an explosion of companies looking at senescence and senolytics. And just on that note, there's another group that's being led by Professor Lorna Harris, and she's again been one of our faculty members on the Science of Ageing. And she and her team are looking at the dysregulation of RNA processing and how that impacts cellular senescence. And so she and her team have set up a spin-off from Exeter University called Senesca, and they are looking at how they can target the RNA dysregulation and look at how they can potentially restore ageing cells using small molecules or genetic interventions, which then can influence the phenotype, but as it relates to the cells, the senescent phenotypes. And so there's a lot of very exciting things from a skin aging perspective, but there's also a lot happening on the technology side. I mean, AI is really being brought in and, and there's a lot of companies looking at how they can leverage AI to be able to help support understanding some of the determinants of health and looking at how the environment influences our genes and, and yielding new insights and eventual solutions. To achieving a healthier longevity or looking at healthspan.

And I think with AI as well, it's just incredible. And obviously machine learning, the amount of data that can be crunched and the models that can be made out of it to forecast and predict. I mean, even taking a huge step back, if you think about wearables, tracking devices, you know, some people are against it, et cetera. But if you look at a car where there's sensors that will let you know, you know, 100 kilometers in advance, if there's going to be an issue, yet we human beings aren't there yet. So I think, you know, the quantifiable self movement is coming more and more. And also if there is mechanisms to actually pick up about potential skin damage, you know, early prediction of diseases and preventing them in the first place, you will have that quality of life throughout your whole life. So it's very exciting. Stephanie, I'd love to change gears a bit and have some rapid fire questions for you that my audience love, starting with morning routines. Do you have any particular morning routine to start your day as a success?

So that's a great question. Well, actually my morning routine has changed significantly since the pandemic. So before March 2020, I pretty much didn't have a routine because I was traveling so much. And so I'd be in a new place and, you know, every couple of weeks and living out of hotels. And so now I've been grounded since March 2020, and there's something I've really actually embraced and I've surprised myself at how adaptable I am to a new routine and actually setting down proper routine. So I start the day now with walking the dogs. It's something that is a really important focus for me and, and really gets me off on the right grounding because I think being in nature is, is incredibly important for me. And there's lots of different studies that have demonstrated that, you know, it, that can have a positive impact to your general wellbeing and health as well. And I think there was a recent study that looked at I can't think of the group off the top of my head, but they looked at even 10 to 15 minutes being in natural spaces can improve your mood as well as focusing on some of the psychological markers, like improving blood pressure and heart rate. So that for me is really key. And I also start the day with a cold shower. And there's again, growing evidence to suggest that this may be linked to mitochondrial biogenesis. And so basically what that means is it's by increasing the, the cell's energy demand that you're actually triggering off increased mitochondrial activity, which then will help with the overall health of the cells. So that's something that is for me an important, you know, I, I know you're a big fan of biohacking as well. And so that's been an experiment for me to see if there's any improvement. And I have to say, I think generally my health is, is good. And I don't know kind of whether that's linked or not, but it's something that I've been reading more on that to kind of incorporate that into my daily routine.

That's excellent. And do you actually manage a full cold shower? Because I'm still working on it, but I'm still quite— at the end I turn it cold and I take a few deep breaths.

And, um, I'm the same, Claudia. I'm the same. I have a normal shower and then I turn it to cold for a couple of minutes at the end. But for me, that's enough. And it certainly wakes me up and certainly brings quite a shock to the system, which I think I'll have to say is the benefits of it. Yeah.

You know, one day I might manage an ice bath. I know some people who've managed 3, 4 minutes in an ice bath, and I have my biggest respect And I saw recently on YouTube, I'm sure you're familiar with Wim Hof, you know, the Iceman, and he was showing how he does his cold shower. However, it was palm trees and he was outside and he was singing. So if there's palm trees and warm weather, I can definitely do the cold shower as well. It's more when you're in colder climates that it becomes a bit tricky. But interestingly, I've seen that I used to really feel the cold, especially sort of in hands and feet, and things like that have completely gone. And I don't know the science-y part to it, but The heating regulation system has gotten a lot better because of that. And I don't get sick. I don't get colds, touch wood. So I think that there are definite benefits that I'm sure more and more information will come out about. So yeah, that sounds like two great ways to start the day.

Yeah, yeah, definitely. And I think this is where, you know, there are so many different interventions being discussed from a kind of what you can incorporate into your daily life. And, you know, there is the exercise element and your muscle mass. I mean, that's another element that is really clear is that the impact of aging can have on your muscle mass. Your muscle mass reduces by, I think it's around about 5%, around about that kind of range, around about 5% every decade after the age of 30. And that's something I think that's really important. And that's something as well, kind of, you know, around resistance training to ensure that you are maintaining muscle masses as far as possible, because obviously that helps just overall from the mobility perspective as well as kind of ensuring that you've got what's good functioning physiologically. But I think there's so many different areas that are being reported at the minute. There definitely still needs to be that translation into the clinical setting to understand, yes, we may see there's change at the cellular level, but does that actually impact from a meaningfulness perspective to the individual?

Or is it a placebo effect? Exactly. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, I think, you know, if people find something works for them, they should do it. But, you know, obviously not coming from the science Yeah. Stephanie, do you have a favorite quote or piece of advice received that was a real game changer for you and why?

A bit of advice that was given to me by one of my very good friends, and this is really kind of more kind of from a career perspective, pushing yourself out of your comfort zone really makes you feel alive. And I couldn't agree more. And I think it definitely has helped me kind of embrace some of those uncertainties and really kind of given me the confidence actually And I guess, you know, just driven me to make those steps and make those changes because it's something that if you don't try, you don't know. And I think that there's a lot to be said at really just embracing the opportunities that life puts in front of you rather than thinking of the, well, what might happen and thinking of what the negative impact would be. I think there's a lot to be said, even learning from your mistakes as well. So that for me is a really good mantra that I live by is, is really always looking for opportunities that perhaps might feel uncomfortable at the time and maybe, you know, shrouded in uncertainties. That's helped me, you know, really take massive strides forward and will continue to be a mantra that I look to.

I completely agree. I had a mentor once who told me I should push myself out of my comfort zone every day. Haven't quite got that far, but I think just having that as the benchmark, it does push you. And exactly, it's a mindset thing. Do you focus on the negative or do you focus on the positive of it as well.

So that's great advice. Can I ask you, have you got a mantra or quote that you particularly like?

Oh gosh, I think that there's a few different ones, starting with carpe diem, right? So just thinking every new day is a great way to start, to also pushing yourself outside of your comfort zone. I think that kind of reflects back on it's better to have tried and lost than never to have tried at all. And I guess some things that I'm pondering as well is you know, the speed of recovery. Because, well, if you don't try— and, you know, I've got kids as well, and I have a 7-year-old who's a perfectionist— to try to show her that it's okay to make mistakes. And, you know, I have to practice what I preach as well. You learn from them, so it makes you kind of reflect on yourself as well.

So good question.

I think I love that. Yeah. And to be kind to yourself, right? I used to be such a perfectionist as well, and it's okay, and we're human. And kind of just shake it off like animals do, right? And then you pick yourself up again and move on. So I think it makes life much more interesting and exciting.

So thanks for the question. I love that.

Yeah, no, definitely, I completely agree with you. Over the last 5 years, and obviously we've had COVID, so I'm sure there's going to be some changes, but what new belief, behavior, or habit has most improved your life?

Wow, and that's a good question. I think the connectivity piece is really key. I think I have got a tendency tendency to be a workaholic. And I do quite often get very wrapped up in what I'm doing and focused and, you know, really spend a lot of time and energy into my job, into my team. And I think it's important still for my team. And that's something that we've been like looking at ways how we can better connect now that we're, you know, not in the opportunity to be seeing each other on a regular basis. I mean, I'm actually based in the UK and the majority of my team are based in the US. On the West Coast in California, both South California, North California, but we've actually now got a team in Israel as well. And we've got individuals scattered across the US as well as in the UK. So it's something that actually, in essence, this ability to connect virtually has actually been a really big opportunity for us. And it's something that's been a really big focus as well, is to make sure that we are almost making a bigger effort from a connection point of view. And really, you know, I think isolation is key. We know that there's a lot of negative impacts of isolation on mental wellness and most likely translates into being physically unwell as well. So I think, you know, the connectivity is something that has really been a change and a really big focus on that. And it's not just from a work perspective, but it's also making sure that I spend time with my loved ones as well. And although I'm not traveling around, I'm spending a lot of time at home, which has actually had huge, big benefits just to really reconnect and, you know, have that human contact.

I completely agree as well. The power of connection, especially I think I think, you know, in the world of technology and devices where you can send a WhatsApp message in a few short words, actually taking time to physically sit with somebody and you talk more about being in nature. And I think it's kind of, you know, that energy you get with connecting with somebody and as nice as it is to see them on Zoom and on screens to actually have that face-to-face time, it's just super important from a personal and also, you know, professional perspective, you have a different level of connection as well. So that's a really good point. Thank you for raising that.

Stephanie, thinking of the word successful, who is the first person who comes to mind and why? Wow, that is a great question. I think, you know, to be honest, there's a whole number of, I guess, individuals who come into mind for me, and I've actually been thinking about successful. How do you actually define success? And I find that actually sometimes quite challenging because there's different aspects that come into play. I think, you know, those who've managed to be able to find a good balance as it relates to work life as well as home life and being able to kind of find satisfaction in that. I've got a couple of very good friends that have managed to do that and who won't be quite so relevant for this, this podcast or be recognizable. No problem. They've really kind of, you know, made a huge concerted effort to ensure that they are still focusing on what to be done from a work perspective, but really kind of like you said, embracing every day and ensuring that, you know, that they're spending time with their loved ones as well as getting out and about. And so from that point of view, that to me really defines success. I think when it comes to the aspect of success as it relates to, I guess, the working environment, I would say for me, a lot of the successful people that come to mind are the people that actually are the luminaries and experts in the longevity space. I mean, they are the ones who really, you know, they're continuing to pursue success and then pursue kind of advancing the knowledge here. But I think also who've really been, you know, making huge, big inroads in ensuring the awareness is brought to the area and that they are translating it out there to general knowledge and to help, you know, everybody start to think about how they can access interventions to be able to help better equip them for later decades.

I mean, there's a whole, there's a whole list.

Have a look at the agenda for our previous Science of Aging symposium as well as this year. I mean, pretty much all of those individuals who've come on and presented or been moderators to me are very successful individuals and people who I respect highly. I've mentioned Lorna Harris at Exeter University. She's such an inspiration. The energy that she brings and, you know, the research that her team are continuing to develop is fascinating. But I think, you know, she's just a very considerate, compassionate individual as well. Also, we've had Tina Woods, and Tina Woods is a social entrepreneur and is doing a lot of incredible work, certainly in the UK, of interacting with the UK government and leaders in the fields of business, industry, policymaking, as well as the healthcare environment to really kind of try and drive to her mission is to support UK population to be living longer from a healthier perspective. So actually, you know, she's focused on healthspan. We've had Susan Bailey, who's a NASA scientist, and she presented on telomere and the impact of telomere attrition on longevity. This year we have got David Sinclair, who is a big name in the longevity space. He's gonna be coming and presenting on, on why we age and, and why we don't have to, which is the focus of his book. We've also got Dr. Judy Campisi, who's a big name in this Nessun Space, and Dr. James Kirkland. I could just sit and list off the names. And so I don't want to kind of necessarily be seen to be picking out individuals who— there's so many— sit amongst a kind of a whole kind of group of really inspiring and brilliant people. And I also, you know, very much appreciate our co-chairs that we've got, Dr. David McDaniel and Dr. Patricia Ogilvie, who are both dermatologists and have got a real passion in this area. Have been fantastic partners to work on—

sorry, work with on the science of ageing. So exciting. Yeah. And so many luminaries that you've mentioned as well, and yourself included. Thank you. Thank you. What has been your most exciting purchase, Stephanie, in the last 6 months? I love specifics.

So any brand, model, etc., so we can find it. Again, a great question. I think sort of thinking about it There's lots of different things, I guess, not necessarily maybe related to the longevity space. I mean, I guess it's a bit of a coincidence. Yesterday I put in an order for my skincare regimen that we mentioned earlier, and I'm kind of conscious about not necessarily naming companies here, but I did stock up on my serums and my antioxidant serums, as well as a good cleanser and toner, and also sunscreen. We talked about the importance Tortoise of Sunscreen. So that's something, and it does make me excited. I have to say, I love working in aesthetics and I love skin products and I love just the whole process of having that discussion. I mean, I always would recommend and recommend to your listeners that they speak to a well-qualified provider of information. And I actually go and see a doctor and her background is cosmetic surgery, and I also have consulted with dermatologists. And so, you know, for me, that's a really great experience of discussing that and also getting aesthetic treatments because I'm a big proponent of aesthetic treatments. So I guess that's also been a purchase of getting my aesthetic treatments that I very much enjoy, and, and it's very important for me to be maintaining my aesthetic health.

In terms of sunscreen, I would love your opinion because there's obviously a lot that are not so healthy. What are things that people should look out for when deciding on a good quality sunscreen to use, particularly for the face?

And the back of the hands. Yeah, absolutely. Well, I have to say this is an area that, you know, the experts certainly within our company sit in our skincare division. And I think, you know, what I would always be suggesting is to see that you get the protection from UVA and UVB. I think as well, the more evidence that they've generated to be able to back up the claims that they put forward with regards to kind of the protection that they provide is very important.

Important. Stephanie, where can people learn more about what you are up to? Maybe social media, websites, and what would you like to share with people?

So I'm on both Instagram and LinkedIn, and I'm under the name Dr. Stephanie Manson-Brown, and my Instagram is Dr. S. Manson-Brown. That's my handle. We also have got social media channels for the Science of Aging. I do need to note that the channels are a closed community, both on the Instagram and LinkedIn for Science of Aging, and so that they're only open to healthcare professionals and academics. So unfortunately, it's not open just to the general population. And this is just a really great opportunity and a great platform really for scientific exchange and to be discussing, you know, and I put on my update with respect to kind of some of the exciting publications and articles that have been recently published in the scientific literature as it relates to some of the areas from longevity and aging research. And it also shares details with respect to our up-and-coming events. And also we profile the faculty members who are part of our scientific symposia. So there's a lot of information there. You can go back and see some of the video clips from some of the previous SENS symposia as well.

Oh, excellent. I will definitely be checking that out. Stephanie, before we close, do you have any final ask, recommendation, or parting thoughts or message for my audience?

So, well, first of all, I just wanna say thank you again for having me on your podcast. It's been an absolute pleasure and I've really enjoyed spending some time just talking to you and talking to some of the really key topics and your questions have been fantastic. I guess just a parting thought. For your audience is just as I mentioned earlier, I think starting younger to be starting to explore and research and the different interventions that are out there from a point of view of skin health is really important. And I think, you know, the three areas that I would suggest that they look at are looking at sunscreen. So definitely from a protective perspective, antioxidants that help from a protective and a repair perspective, and also moisturizer just to make sure that, you know, you're hydrating and protecting that outer layer. So I think that that's really important. There's a lot of other information out there as it relates to different interventions that can be taken from a longevity perspective. And I think, you know, where there's more science, you know, look for where there is the credibility behind it and the research to be able to help translate what the potential hypothesis and state as it relates to, you know, where they could be bringing benefit. And I think, you know, you mentioned it earlier, Claudia, you know, find something that actually suits your lifestyle. I think by taking measures, and they can be as simple as diet and exercise, so eating a really healthy diet and making sure that you incorporate exercise regularly into your lifestyle, as well as getting good sleep. And I think, you know, kind of the arbitrary numbers around about 8 hours, these are really important factors that, you know, the importance of them is very clear. But I think also we need to recognize that by incorporating, they are relatively simple, but we also need to give ourselves some credit when we actually do incorporate them because it's demonstrating that you're taking a proactive approach to your general health and your longevity. Excellent advice.

Thank you so much, Stephanie, for coming on today.

It's been such a pleasure to have you.

Thank you. Hi everyone, this is Claudia again. Before you take off, thank you so much for listening to the podcast today. I hope you learned as many valuable insights on living better for longevity as I did. I'd love you to join our longevity tribe so we can learn and grow together, as well as hear your feedback. So please subscribe to the podcast. And leave a review to let me know what you thought. Thanks so much and take care.