Tech turn back time . This week we meet the biohackers. The super agers. And the brain trackers. To find out if tech really can stop us from getting old. Welcome to click. Were outside again. Great to see you in the flesh again. And you. I cant believe it. No matter how long it is since ive seen people, as soon as i see Friends And Family again, its like weve never been apart yep, too right. Although this time round, i think everybody� s really gone for it with their hair, since the hairdresser� s reopened. I dont know what youre talking about. I tell you what, though, it is true that weve spent so much time apart in the last year that when we do see people in the reals, you really notice the difference. My Parents Cant believe how much my kids have grown since they last saw them. And thats kind of what were talking about today the fact that even though were all getting older on the outside, there are ways to stay younger on the inside by hacking our health. Now, if youre anything like me you may be using an Activity Tracker to log your exercise. But at the moment, were just scratching the surface of the data thats hidden inside our bodies. Aside from exercise, theres genetics, sleep, diet so many other lifestyle factors that can really make a difference. And there are some people who believe if we can unlock this complete picture of our health, then we might be able to stop or even reverse the Ageing Process. Instead of talking about lifespan, were now talking about Health Span the desire to stay as fit and healthy as possible for as long as possible, even though the years are ticking on by. Though the years have been clocking up on this fine frame, my chronological age, therefore, is 47 but there is something else called a biological age, which is the age that you are inside. Now, ive had that checked. Have a guess at the results. Um, 21 . Now she is just is taking the mickey. Lets find out. Kings genomics centre, part of a world leading Research University in london, and where im discovering the secrets in my dna. So james, a few weeks ago, i spat into a tube and posted it to you. Youre welcome. My epigenetic age is. 44. 1. Not too bad yeah, so your biological age is basically seeing how your cells are ageing, the various things such as your diet, how much stress youre under, how much sleep youre getting. Its a nice barometer to predict your future health. My genes didntjust deliver one age though. Muhdo uses Artificial Intelligence to trawl through 850,000 different biological markers to deliver different ages for different body parts. For example, my Eye Age is 53 but my Hearing Age is 43. 7. And the key thing that scientists now know is that although your genes do set you on your lifes course, they are not set in stone. Your genetics will underpin most of your predispositions, so theyll give you a positive or a negative. Whether that actually comes into fruition is up to you, really, because you flick on these genes with your lifestyle environment. The company has run tests with some 2,500 people, but more research will be needed to take some of its advice from anecdotal evidence to scientific fact. If you want to reduce your Memory Age then dancing is quite good, apparently. Ive got old eyes . Carrots. Weve always been told that carrots are quite good for us and thats actually true. Have you ever seen a rabbit wearing glasses . Now, whether you go the full Bugs Bunny or whether you samba your way to better brain health, this is about building a personalised picture of health. What works for me will not work for you and vice versa, but well be able to actually pinpoint what your diet needs to look like, how much stress you can be exposed to, what pharmaceuticals you can and cannot take. We can pinpoint them exactly, specifically, to you. Ok, im going to try to go to bed maybe an hour earlier. Im going to go for a walk in the morning. Whats that going to do to my biological age . So it gamifies genetics. Muhdo has partnered with Kings College london, where experts say that our biological Age Isnt fixed. And in fact, it doesnt have to progress in just one direction. The ageing, or biological score, is malleable. The risk of getting an age related disease such as diabetes can be increased or decreased based on your lifestyle. And thats led some people who ive met in the past to suggest that we might be able to stop the Ageing Process altogether. Most notably aubrey de gray, who famously suggested that within the next century, we might be able to extend our lifespan by hundreds of years. We develop ways at the molecular and cellular level to repair the damage that the body does to itself throughout life. Theres a lot of talk about stopping the Ageing Process or even reversing the Ageing Process. Towards The End of my lifetime, probably, i think we can have immortality, if youre willing to pay for it. Now, genetic trackers are not the only Testing Tool to help counter ageing. Another company has analysed things called glycans in my blood. These have given an idea of the age of my immune system. In this case, we are looking at sugars on immunoglobulin, which is the most abundant antibodies, so its a key weapon in our arsenal in our immune system. Now, youve measured my biological age at 20. I was flattered for a few seconds and i thought no, that cant be right a 40 or 50 year old can have a much younger glycan age, and thats really good for you. If youre talking about grey hairs or skin, then i would use a different clock for that. 0k. Now, all of these different numbers attached to different bits of my body are leading me to think we are using the wrong word here. Do you think its helpful to actually use the word � age� . The word � age� in its own right must be taken in context of how we are using it. A biological score would be a more sensible way of thinking about your age. And the fact that you can change your biological score is very positive. Its not all Doom And Gloom i am set to be old and decrepit at a certain time in my life. This can be slowed down or even reversed. Whatever your personal measurement is, scores like this could flag impending Ill Health with a Study Spotting that a change in your glycans could signal coming arthritis, cardiovascular Disease Or Diabetes up to a decade before onset. 0ur Dataset is really good, so it is 150,000 people that some which weve followed for 20 30 years. Its a warning where you can still do something about it and prevent it. And just a small warning a good score now doesnt give you a free pass to a healthy future. So It Changes its not something that is going to stay the same throughout. And this is a way for you to know if something particularly works for you. Now, i think im going to take some of my results with a pinch of salt just a pinch, though because thats not good for you either but there are those whove been tracking their data for more than a decade in an attempt to delay the inevitable. Hi, im tim. Im 42 chronologically and 25 32 biologically. I run one of the largest biohacking communities in the world from london. Thats the form there. Most things i track every day where possible, but some things i track on a monthly basis, such certain blood tests. Actually, can we use the right one . I started doing this because i got chronically sick, so i took it upon myself to start researching ways to optimise my health. Ive had epigenetic tests, immune tests, hormone tests. You can see how you compare to the general population and you can have professionals look at your data and not just rely on your own subjective experience. I start my day with natural light blue light when there is not natural sunrise. I currently track around 50 points of data a day. A Health Ring which tracks my deep sleep, rem sleep, light sleep, Heart Rate variability, resting Heart Rate, respiratory Rate And Body temperature. I also have one of these. If my heart has been stressed through the night, i know to have a Recovery Day and take it easy whereas if my vitals are strong, then obviously i will push on and work out harder. Blood tracker. I track my Blood Glucose using a constant Glucose Monitor and what that does is it tells me my response to certain foods so i can actually personalise my nutrition. Some people think it might be extreme, having something in my arm all the time, but for me, living a happy, healthy life is more important than peoplejudging me for having a few bits of tech. This is my daily supplements here. My digestive supplements. This is my back up draw my dishwasher. It is really about being the ceo of your own health. There may not be double blind studies behind some of these things but remember, all science is evolving. Some things do work long term, some things dont. Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy really does help the body heal and repair properly. So there is much more pressure in here which means we dissolve more oxygen in the blood. It gives me extra mental clarity and i feel very zen in it. You wouldnt even know that anything was happening. 0ccasionally, your ears pop a Little Bit. If i have stuff going on and i need to chill out, then i do meditate. Sensory feedback helps me relax. Its like the perfect balance between nature and technology. Some may say its a contradiction of terms, needing to use technology to unwind, but the point is most people use technology to unwind already think about netflix. A typical evening for me consists of blue blocking glasses, Red Light when you dont get to see sunset, going digital free and really having some time to myself. There is such a thing as too much data. You can drive yourself mad tracking too many points. Stress is bad for health, obviously, so letting go a bit is also important. If youre not sleeping well, track that. If youre bloating, track your gut bacteria. It can become a hobby, admittedly, but it is really important that you do the things that you need to do for you. Some of my colleagues would like to live to around 180. I want to die as young as possible, as late as possible thats the goal. Hello and welcome to the week in tech it was the week Royal Mail announced Trialling Autonomous drones to deliver drones remotely from Mainland Uk to the isles of scilly. Elon musk tweeted that tesla will no longer accept bitcoin as payment for its vehicles, due to climate change concerns. And after a year of being iphone only, audio based social Networking App Clubhouse became available to android users in the us. Drivers are suffering Petrol Shortages as a result of a Ransomware Attack on a major Oil Pipeline in the united states. A Cybercriminal Gang Called Darkside has forced Colonial Pipeline to shut down the main part of its network, causing the price of petrol to go up to its highest level in nearly seven years. The Uk Government launched its new 0nline safety bill, which outlines ways of keeping children safe, stopping racial hate and protecting democracy online. It received criticism from campaigners, claiming the bill was too vague and fines too low. And finally, if you want to understand cats yes, youve guessed it, robots a group of researchers from Osaka University have developed a 4 legged robot which reproduces the Neuromuscular Dynamics of cats so precisely, they can now study the locomotion of the robot instead of experimenting on living, moving animals. What a purrfect way to protect our feline friends how to extend your life is a famous obsession here in silicon valley. And the answer may be found in so called super agers. I am beryl voss, and im 88 years old. She is a picture of health. Twice a Week Beryl volunteers here at a Food Hall for san franciscos hungry. Ive got to be honest, when i first saw how old beryl was i was shocked, and thought perhaps it was a typo on our database. This is a joy because it isjust 12 blocks down The Hill to work. She is a keen hiker and has a boyfriend. He is younger, he is only 77. They might call me a cougar, i guess. Beryl� s part of a study into why people like her have aged so well and what science can learn from her. Joel kramer is overseeing that research. We have already seen really significant gains in longevity over the past 20 30 years. The increase in Health Span though hasnt really kept up with the increase in lifespan. In silicon valley, problems always have solutions, and ageing isjust another problem. The general goal of these companies is pretty simple try and work out how we age, and then produce a product that will prevent it, or at least slow it down. Much of the research is focused on identifying the things that are common among the very old and very healthy, and then replicating them. They already are humans who are living to like 100 plus in really good health and we are trying to figure out what is different about those people at the molecular level to help the rest of us age better. You have these very large datasets, i feel like Human Datasets too, and you are taking this Agnostic Approach where you are not saying oh, we know for sure its this one particular biological pathway, we are saying we dont know, we are just going to let the data tell us. Bioage labs is still in its research phase, it hasnt released a product yet. However there are companies in the Health Span field that have products on the market right now. Elysium health is a company based in New York that makes dietary supplements. Its product, matter, is aimed at slowing down brain ageing. The problem is the brain shrinks after you reach a certain age. Elysium claims their products can prevent the brain from shrinking, and its efficacy is based on a study at the University Of Oxford looking into why brains reduce in size as we get older. There is established data that says that matter will really be helpful because there is nothing else out there that people can take that really works. However, the product is a combination of B Vitamins and omega 3, which have both been readily available for years. Whats new here is the dose, its higher, and the right combination of B Vitamins. And as for anyone claiming a healthspan miracle drug, well, Joel Kramer says he is sceptical. I think would call it premature science. We are a long ways away from being able to identify any of those molecules, so that any companies that are out there touting the efficacy of some of these compounds are really selling you a bill of goods, it is more Snake Oil Medicine at this point. Now we are working on a trip to New Zealand in february, a 3. 5 week hiking trip. We do know lots of things about why some people live longer and healthier lives than others. But many of the answers may not surprise you. Probably the strongest recommendation is to choose your parents very well. In other words, get lucky and have really good longevity genes. Anything that is good for your heart is going to be good for your brain, so a heart healthy diet, heart healthy lifestyle, Physical Exercise is really important. Silicon valley is trying to distil why people like beryl are so active at nearly 90. But at the moment, her Wonder Drug is still good genes, exercise and a positive outlook on life. My secret . I dont know, friends, people, nature, everything i love. I want to be like that at 88 forget all about hacking and implant stuff we saw earlier on the show, i just want to age well. Come on, dont you want to be a cyborg . I would love to be a cyborg. Oh, im not ready for that. Now, tech to stop us ageing is all well and good, but today there were 125 Million people aged 80 or over, and many of them are already living with age related illnesses. Get up and sometimes have a cup of tea in bed. And wash and dress, have breakfast, probably go out for a walk if this lovely weather continues. And just enjoy life. Meet 89 year old eileen. She is one of 50 Million people around the world living with alzheimers or another form of dementia. To aid her independence, eileen� s family, who live some distance away, have had her flat fitted with sensors. These track her movement and her use of the kettle and fridge. Mum had a good night last night, we can see from the graph. She did, yeah, i can see that, the last couple of nights i noticed there was more frequent and close together visits to the bathroom. Eileen� s Family And Care team used the data to make positive changes, like moving her clock to prompt her to make cups of tea to stay hydrated. We are already looking at a Bed Sensor and potentially a special cup that will detect whether someone is having enough to drink. Its about providing intelligence, not data. You can get so many different devices that willjust stream out lots of data, because ultimately what people want to know is really just three things. Is mum 0k . Has something gone wrong that i need to respond to immediately . Is something changing over time that i could look at and create a better Care Outcome for her . Like this bio dose pillbox, filled by a robot and then checked by a pharmacist. It tracks the medication being taken out of it, an alarm goes off if the dose has been missed, and if it is still not taken, a Loved One can be alerted. But striking the balance between Care And Privacy can be challenging. The sensors are there, but i am not aware of them all the time, just the secure feeling that i am cared for, and that there is always somebody there for me. Its so great to see Technology Help patients and their families. A new Brain Analysis Tool could help provide earlier diagnosis and even potentially assist in creating better drugs to help. Jen copestake has been finding out more. Using tools to monitor patients remotely has become more pressing since the coronavirus pandemic. A collaborative study called Radar Ad aims to help see how alzheimers patients can be monitored in new and improved ways. One of the Assessment Tools in the study is an augmented Reality App called altoida, which is showing spatial Navigation And Memory function. It works by asking the person to choose three virtual objects and place them around a room. They then have to remember where they placed the objects, what order it was and what the actual object was. Device go to where you want to place the heart. As well as this memory test, off the Shelf Technology is being repurposed to. This is a Medallion Camera that the participant wears around their neck, it captures digital photographs on a cyclic basis. So it doesnt take constant footage but it does provide valuable contextual information. While alzheimers is not a movement disorder, Analysis Trackers can gather useful data points. To go on the instep of each foot and the final one goes on the right hip. We know that as cognitive decline worsens it does cause changes in walking patterns, so they might suddenly change direction or stop because they are not sure where they are, theyve realised they are going in the wrong direction. In the uk, over 850,000 people are living with dementia. Do you want me to run through the instructions again briefly . Normally, dementia is diagnosed through a series of Paper Memory tests, in person with a doctor. But these tests lack nuance and can be learned by the patient over time. John and his partner richard are here in Crowborough Hospital in East Sussex testing a new app called Cognetivity Which aims to prevent this. So if you see an animal, youre clicking on the right side of the screen. John has recently been diagnosed with alzheimers disease. There were many verbal tests and number tests. I am used to people respecting me and not asking you silly questions. To be in that position i think was difficult at first, really. Instead of lists of questions, the app flashes rapid images. Each picture is either an image of an animal or not an animal. The user indicates their choice by pressing the left or right side of the ipad screen. As it cannot be learned, the test gives an objective analysis of the patient� s neurological state, even when repeated multiple times. What the test does is use rapid visual categorisation. It looks to see how quickly the brain can process complicated information. Is it always an animal or a landscape . So, its always an animal or not an animal. And that is a very important aspect of the test, because the Human Brain is very finely tuned to be able to pick up on animal stimuli. The use of this will make it easier to assess larger numbers of patients, but more importantly it speeds the Referral Process and results in early diagnosis and early treatment for patients, which is exceptionally important. Another possible way to remotely measure cognitive headsets like this one from belfast Brainwave Bank could be used at home to track changes in Brainwave Activity. The Eeg Scanner connects to a Smartphone App to record and analyse data. As subtle changes in Brainwave Activity can be observed up to ten years before symptoms of dementia present, these technologies could be vital in early diagnosis. And the more individual data that is collected could feed into Bespoke Treatment plans and drug development. Wow, what a show i feel a bit younger just from watching it. Do you . Im actually feeling a bit concerned i havent been doing the things i should have been doing for anti ageing. Come on, if you havent been doing them, no one has listen, go and do them this week, ill see you back in your box next week. That is all we have got time for this week though. As ever you can keep up with the team on Social Media find us on youtube, instagram, Facebook And Twitter at bbcclick. Thanks for watching and we will see you soon. Bye bye. Hello. Although the weather will be a little quieter across the uk overall today, in contrast to recent days, its not settling down properly any time soon. The end of the week looking very stormy indeed, and that will be thanks to this area of low Pressure Barreling in on thursday and friday. Weve kind of got a weak area of low pressure still with us for today. Its going to feed in a band of more organised showers to the south for first thing. This should clear the south east, though, by the time we get to lunchtime. Cloud and some patchy Rain Drifting South across scotland, and then through the afternoon, livelier, thundery showers develop, particularly across Eastern Scotland and the eastern side of england. A few elsewhere towards the west, but generally much drier for wales and the South West and many parts of the midlands than it has been of late. As we move through the overnight period, clear skies and light winds, actually pretty chilly into the small hours of thursday with a risk of a few pockets of ground frost, particularly for central and eastern areas. In the west, the wind will already, though, be starting to pick up, The Cloud piling in and this deep area of low pressure starts to make itself felt first thing on thursday. Wind and rain into the west, spreading to all areas through the day. Yes, there will be some heavy rain, but potentially not as heavy as some of us have seen out of the recent showers. The big issue is likely to be the wind, particularly gusty in areas adjacent to the irish sea, gusting 45 50mph, strong enough to do some damage and cause some disruption. 0ur Temperatures still very unremarkable for the time of year, at least a couple of degrees below where wed expect to see them. Thursday into friday, the area of low pressure continues its progress across the uk, so another windy day on friday. Perhaps a Little Bit drier towards the far south and to the far north, but overall, plenty of showers still set to swirl around that low. And the biggest headache yet again will be the winds. Very strong gusts across Southern Britain on friday. And still our temperatures, well, were barely scraping into the mid teens. For the weekend, it looks like things will become somewhat quieter, certainly on saturday, perhaps some dry weather towards the west. Yet more showers, though, on sunday. Welcome to bbc news, im david eades. Our top stories israels Prime Minister warns the operation against hamas In Gaza will take as long as needed to restore calm. At the un, france pushes for a Resolution But Washington says it wants to pursue talks behind the scenes. The Prime Minister of spain vows to restore order to its territories in north africa, where thousands of migrants have crossed from morocco. Morocco stands accused of allowing this unprecedented influx. , allowing this unprecedented influx. ,. , influx. Last month it warned sain of influx. Last month it warned spain of consequences influx. Last month it warned spain of consequences amid influx. Last month it warned i spain of consequences amid a diplomatic row. It seems this is what they were talking about. And a Self Portrait like no other. But who is the artist behind this ground breaking exhibition