New Body Cosmetic Surgery Center, Pasadena, CA

16 - The Brave New World of Anti-Aging

My "take" on the medical literature is that this hormone may be helpful for many problems. Also, the patients' stories are remarkable. It has been claimed to restore vigor, sexuality, energy, muscles, and also to slowly get rid of fat without a change in diet or exercise patterns. All the organs of the body may grow a little in size, reversing the trend that comes with aging, and it is also a therapy for osteoporosis (thinning of the bone structure). There are even rumors that it helps reverse or stabilize farsightedness associated with aging. There are very few known side effects with it after decades of experience using it on children, and more than 10 years experience with older people. It's now manufactured to be exactly like the HGH the body produces. Unfortunately, it has to be given, like insulin, in injection form, and currently costs up to $200 a week. Prices should come down very soon.

We have to be careful about premature judgments, however. Every physician has seen drugs touted early on as the cure for everything up to and including hangovers, which later proved to have some major problem. But the early studies and stories about HGH are very encouraging. I have a 55-year-old physician friend who has been using it for six months. He says that he's lost 20 pounds, feels great, and that his sex life has improved. People over 40 should watch developments in this area carefully. I think we may be headed for significant breakthroughs with HGH, both in longevity and the quality of life.

Even if you don't have $8,000 per year to shell out for HGH, you might try melatonin. It's an over-the-counter pill (though prescription, long-acting varieties are available and probably superior), and very cheap. This hormone may be the master sleep regulator. The amount of melatonin in the body falls dramatically between 30 and 40 years old, and it is given as replacement therapy by some physicians specializing in anti-aging. It seems to really help sleep, and has been used widely to treat jet lag (taken at 8 p.m. in the time zone you're entering). Effective doses are many times the three milligram tablet that is available. Consult your doctor for advice.

"Anti-oxidant" vitamins are thought by some to "scavenge free radicals" or clean up molecular destruction in the body. I think the evidence for this is not as strong as most of the topics in this chapter, but there doesn't seem to be any harm in taking vitamins if the doses are not too high. Make your own judgments; this can get expensive and I don't have a final opinion now. I do, however, take vitamins myself. Avoid vitamin E before surgery, as it acts as a blood thinner and can make bleeding more likely and more difficult to stop.

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