The editorial spine
The three pillars
Heart disease, type 2 diabetes and Alzheimer’s present as separate specialties with separate clinics. Follow each one down far enough and you arrive at the same three failures.
They are not independent. Inflammation drives insulin resistance, which damages mitochondria, which produces more inflammation. That loop is most of what we experience as aging — and it’s why interventions that look unglamorous tend to help on several fronts at once.
01Chronic inflammationInflammation that never resolves. Implicated in cardiovascular disease, diabetes, autoimmune conditions, several cancers, and cognitive decline.0 pieces02Insulin resistanceCells stop responding to insulin, and the body compensates by making more of it. It can hide behind normal blood sugar for a decade or more.0 pieces03Mitochondrial dysfunctionThe cell's power plants produce less energy than they used to. The tissues that need the most energy feel it first.0 pieces