Forget weightlifting and supplements: Viral 93-year-old’s habits could help you live longer

Longevity is the latest buzzword, which means the world is obsessed with finding the latest, greatest wellness trend guaranteed to make them live forever (or at least until 100). 

From cold plunges to wildly expensive supplements, many wellness aficionados are beginning to ask if you really need all of that to age better.

According to Harvard-trained, board-certified dermatologist Dr Jessica Wu, the answer is actually quite simple.

Dr Wu’s recent social media video featuring her 93-year-old father went viral for its refreshingly uncomplicated approach to aging. 

Instead of chasing the latest wellness trends, his daily routine centers on simple, sustainable habits, including dancing with his wife, avoiding sweet treats and practicing hara hachi bu, which is eating until 80 percent full.

The Beverly Hills-based dermatologist shared a now-viral Instagram post in June with the caption, ‘My Dad turned 93 and still sprints up stairs.’ Over the video she advised, ‘Biohacker bros, brace yourselves.’ 

‘For as long as I can remember, he’s always been active, moving, fixing things and taking care of household chores himself instead of outsourcing everything,’ Dr Wu told the Daily Mail – adding that he has never stepped foot in a gym. 

‘The longevity industry loves supplements and powders,’ Dr Wu said. ‘My father’s diet is very unglamorous. He has never taken a supplement or followed an eating plan.’

‘His longevity plan would make a terrible podcast: no cold plunge, Zone 2, or talk about mitochondria,’ Dr Wu wrote on Instagram. 

Dr Wu’s followers were wildly impressed and rushed to the comments with questions about how they could re-create his routine. Many complimented his ‘great genes.’

‘The longest lived people are not over optimizing themselves with all these protocols,’ one commenter agreed. 

Many people watching her viral video assumed her father’s health must simply come down to genetics, but Dr Wu, who is 58 and said she has no interest in ‘trying to look 28,’ disagrees.

The former math professor wakes up around seven in the morning, eats steel-cut oats with no milk or sugar, followed by sushi, salad or leftovers. Dinner is steamed or stewed stir-fried vegetables with tofu, fish or a small amount of chicken or pork along with a modest scoop of rice.

He rarely eats red meat and only has dessert on special occasions like birthdays.

He also does not embrace the latest wellness trends, like vilifying seed oil. ‘My mother has cooked with ordinary cooking oils, including seed oils, for almost 60 years,’ Dr Wu noted. ‘That challenges the wellness industry’s habit of blaming one ingredient while ignoring the overall dietary pattern.’

Instead of counting calories, her father naturally follows the Japanese principle of hara hachi bu, which is stopping when you’re about 80 percent full. He eats slowly, takes sips of soup or water between bites and only eats until he’s satisfied, not stuffed.

‘The longevity industry offers promises and shortcuts – buy this product. Track this number. Endure this extreme protocol and you’ll live to 120,’ Dr Wu said.

Dr Wu, whose father volunteered to be her first Botox and injectable patient back in 1996, sees many similarities in cosmetic dermatology.

‘People assume the most natural-looking celebrities must have done nothing,’ she said. 

While she would never ‘speculate,’ she did say that in her ‘own practice the best results usually come from small, appropriate treatments performed consistently over many years.’

Just as dramatic wellness interventions aren’t always the answer, she believes healthy skin is built through steady maintenance instead of aggressive overhauls.

‘As people live longer, their skin has to serve them for longer,’ she said.