Leslie Kenny was told in her 30s that she had five years to live. Diagnosed simultaneously with lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, and Hashimoto’s thyroiditis — and told to give up her dream of having children — she did what true Betties do: she refused the prognosis, threw everything she had at it, and got to work.
Now 60 years old, Leslie reports a biological age of 21. She is autoimmune disease-free. And she naturally conceived a child at 43.
Her recovery journey led her to collaborate with University of Oxford scientists and to discover spermidine — a naturally occurring, food-derived longevity compound that was hiding in plain sight. It’s been in our food for millennia, it’s in breast milk, and it’s in every plant on earth. And it addresses 9 of the 12 hallmarks of ageing identified by science as the root causes of why we get older.
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Episode Overview:
0:00 Intro/Teaser
3:55 What Is Spermidine and Why Do We Lose It?
7:52 Autophagy, Hair, Nails & the Biological Dashboard
16:30 The 12 Hallmarks of Ageing, Explained for Real Life
22:03 mTOR, Muscle Loss, and Why Spermidine Is Different
26:02 Food Sources, Dosage & Lifestyle Levers
37:18 Leslie’s Story: The Diagnosis, the Prognosis, the Refusal
54:37 IVIG, Trauma Therapy & the Surprise Pregnancy at 43
1:17:22 Femspan, Future Research & Where to Find Leslie
1:21:11 The After-Party thoughts with Dr. Stephanie
Resources Mentioned in the Episode:
- The Anti-Aging Zone — Dr. Barry Sears (2005)
- The hallmarks of aging
- The quest to slow ageing through drug discovery
- Spermidine – an old molecule with a new age-defying immune function
- Wheat germ, a byproduct of the wheat milling industry, as a beneficial source of anti‐aging polyamines: A quantitative comparison of various forms
- Exploration of the Antioxidant Effect of Spermidine on the Ovary and Screening and Identification of Differentially Expressed Proteins
- The Egg Factor: How a Patient Sparked a Breakthrough: The Story of DHEA at CHR
- Intravenous immunoglobulin for immunomodulation of systemic lupus erythematosus
Bio:
In her 30s, Leslie Kenny was diagnosed with Lupus, Rheumatoid Arthritis, and Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis and was told she had five years to live and to give up on having children. She refused that prognosis, eliminated inflammatory triggers, and supported her body’s healing. Now 60, she reports a biological age of 21, is autoimmune disease-free, and naturally conceived her child at 43. More at oxfordhealthspan.com
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I’m Dr. Stephanie
Part geek, part magic, and all the way passionate about being a well-lived woman.
I want to throw my grandkids in the air in my 70’s. I want to be squatting even more weight than I am now, and putting my OWN luggage in the overhead bin. Sound like weird goals? For me these are just some of the little things that represent a life well-lived.
My health is MY job – I’ll be damned if I rely on luck, ‘good genes’ or a cocktail of drugs that over promise and under deliver.
The Betty Body is my first book-baby, and a collection of what I’ve learned after thousands of clinical hours, hundreds of conversations with the world’s top experts, and most importantly…
This book is an outline of what took ME from “rock-bottom health” at 38, to being my own version of a Betty in my perimenopausal mid 40’s. A woman who is physically strong, full of energy, enjoys mental clarity, great sex and a joyful family life. Is it all roses? Of course not. But I have the stamina and tools to deal with the push and pull of life so that it doesn’t turn into chronic stress.
I want this for you too. Let’s go Bettys!
