Biohacker’s Live Show features top experts in optimal human performance as if they were in your living room. Your host is Teemu Arina, the co-author of the Biohacker’s Handbook and curator of the Biohacker Summit. Catch each episode by subscribing to our podcast on iTunes here.
Dan Pardi is a sleep researcher and CEO. Dan’s life’s work centers on how to help people live healthfully. He is the CEO of humanOS which leverages a novel behavior model to promote health fluency, skill development, and lifestyle insights to help people master their health practice. Dan does research with the Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences Department at Stanford, and the Departments of Neurology and Endocrinology at Leiden University in the Netherlands where he investigates how lifestyle factors, like sleep, influence decision making, cognitive performance, and metabolism. Dan also works with Naval Special Warfare to help the most elite fighters in the world maintain alertness and capable mental performance under challenging circumstances. He currently serves as Board Member for StandUpKids.org, as a Council Director for the True Health Initiative, and Advisor to several health-oriented companies (Ample Meals, Fitstar, Splendid Spoon, Validic), an Editor for the Journal of Evolution and Health. He also runs the podcast HumanOSRadio.
See the interview with Dan below in the first ever Biohacker’s Live Show:
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
RESEARCH OF THE WEEK
The 2017 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine is awarded to Jeffrey Hall, Michael Rosbash and Michael Young for their discoveries of mechanism controlling a truly fundamental process in physiology, how our cells and bodies keep time.
Already in 1729 researchers observed that mimosa-plant opens its leaves during the day but closes them at night in response to amount of light. When placing the plant in constant darkness they observed that the leaves still opened at the appropriate time. The findings were suggesting an endogenous origin of the daily rhythm.
Using fruit flies as a model organism the Nobel laureates isolated a gene that controls the normal daily biological rhythm. When the period gene is active, it leads to a generation of a protein. Presence of this protein actually inhibits the gene expression. This gives rise to the inhibitory feedback mechanism that underlies a circadian rhythm.
They also discovered other clock genes and proteins that are required for a normal circadian rhythm.
Knowledge about these mechanisms can support modifying your lifestyle to reduce risks for development of different kind of diseases.
PROMOTION OF THE WEEK
Dan was kind to offer HumanOS for 1 USD for the first month (normally 9.99 USD). Just go to HumanOS, sign-up and then upgrade to PRO with the code BLS and you are good to go for 1 USD / month!
PRODUCT REVIEW OF THE WEEK
OURA smart ring is designed to measure your body’s physiological signals. The ring features scientifically proven sleep tracking and personalized guidance that is based on data from over a million nights and days. With Oura you are able to understand how your lifestyle affects your body and mind as well as learn your optimal times to move, eat and take a break to get enough restorative sleep.
The ring is to be worn around the clock and it measures your sleep stages, resting heart rate, heart rate variability, and body temperature – all important recovery indicators. In addition to sleep and recovery, the smart ring gives you a holistic view on your activity and its effect on your well-being. As rest and activity influence each other, Oura provides you with an all-encompassing image of your mental and physical health and performance.
Additional info (few examples on different features):
Sleep features:
- Sleep stages (light, deep, REM)
- Sleep quality breakdown
Recovery features:
- Readiness score & readiness insights
- On-demand resting heart rate and heart rate variability tracking for meditation or breathing exercises
Activity features:
- Personalized daily activity goal (based on recovery and readiness)
- Intensity, timing, and duration of physical activities
Other features:
- Long-term sleep, recovery, and activity trends
You can now get 50 USD / 50 EUR discount on the OURA ring at their site by using the code BLS during the checkout.