Podcast Rewind: Defying Gravity: Astronaut Health and Your Genes

Note: This episode originally aired in October 2022.  

Dr. Chris Mason, professor at Weill Cornell Medicine, as he tells the story of his collaboration with NASA on the famous Twins Study and its implications for the future of human health, genetics, and interplanetary travel.  

During this episode you’ll learn about:  

1. Dr. Chris Mason, professor of Physiology and Biophysics at Weill Cornell Medicine [00:00:53]

2. Dr. Mason’s first research mission with NASA [3:48] 

• How space and gravity affected astronaut Scott Kelly [4:28] 
• What is genetic malleability? [8:54] 

3. How many genes do humans have? [10:14] 

• The cost to test a whole genome [12:39] 

4. Thorne’s Biological Age Test, modifying your own genetic expression with lifestyle changes [16:01] 

5. Concern over the scientific possibility of altering genetic expression with technology [18:52] 

6. Questions from the community [23:38] 

• How sterile are the inside of spaceships, and is there such thing as being “too clean” for astronauts? [23:45] 
• Is space itself sterile? [26:03] 
• What TV show most accurately depicts life in space? Space nutrition? [27:11] 
• Do people age at different rates because they’re in space, and can supplements impact how people age? [29:51] 
• When are humans going to Mars, and how will we get our nutrition there? [34:24] 
• What has the space program taught us about the value of supplements? Do astronauts take them now? [35:46]  
• Are astronauts getting less nutrition from the dehydrated foods they eat? [36:53] 
• Will humans find a mineral in space that could someday be used for human health? [38:07] 
• Is there intelligent life out in space? [39:27] 

Resources to topics mentioned in this episode:  

• GENCODE 
• One Giant Leap: What Space Travel Has Taught Us About Health on Earth 
• Research Extracts: NASA’s Twins Study | PCOS and Microbiome | Blueberries for Pain Reduction 
• How Does Thorne’s Biological Age Test Work? 
• What’s Your Actual Age? Chronological vs. Biological Age 
• Assess Your Biological Age With Thorne's Biological Age Health Panel 

• Why It’s Important to Take Methylate While Taking Nicotinamide Riboside 
• What Can a Microbiome Test Tell You That a Genetic Test Can’t? 
• From the podcast archive:  

• Onegevity with Joel Dudley and Chris Mason 
• What You’ll Learn From Biological Age Testing 
• How to Solve an Age-Old Problem, with Dr. Lee Hood 

Products mentioned in this episode: Biological Age Health Panel, FloraMend Prime Probiotic®, Prebiotic +, Niacel® 400, Gut Health Test with Microbiome Wipe 

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* These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.