From Memios
The Longevity Letter
Practical writing and video on living strong and active into your 90s. No hype, no supplements to sell. Just what the evidence supports and what it looks like on an ordinary Tuesday.
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MedicationsDoxycycline
For the uses where randomised evidence exists the effect sizes differ a lot by condition. Randomised placebo-controlled trials give it a protective efficacy of 84% to 96% against Plasmodium falciparum infection when taken daily for malaria prophylaxis.
2026-09-30 · 17 min read
MedicationsEmpagliflozin
Large placebo-controlled outcome trials, all funded by the manufacturers, show fewer heart failure hospitalisations and cardiovascular deaths in heart failure (reduced and preserved ejection fraction).
2026-09-30 · 13 min read
MedicationsEstradiol
The best evidence is that systemic estradiol reliably reduces hot flushes and night sweats and reduces fractures.
2026-09-30 · 22 min read
MedicationsEthinyl Estradiol; Norgestimate
The evidence strongly supports that this combination prevents pregnancy when taken as directed, and one brand (Ortho Tri-Cyclen) has trial evidence supporting an approved use for moderate acne.
2026-09-30 · 16 min read
MedicationsFamotidine
The evidence is strongest for what famotidine does to stomach acid and to ulcers caused by aspirin: in one 404-patient placebo-controlled trial it cut the rate of endoscopic gastric ulcers from 15.0% to 3.4% over 12 weeks.
2026-09-30 · 22 min read
MedicationsFerrous Sulfate
Once swallowed, ferrous iron is absorbed in the small intestine and used by the body to build hemoglobin, correcting iron-deficiency anemia over weeks.
2026-09-30 · 12 min read
MedicationsFinasteride
Finasteride lowers DHT, and the downstream effects are real but modest. In benign prostatic hyperplasia it shrinks the prostate, improves urinary flow and symptom scores modestly.
2026-09-30 · 22 min read
MedicationsFluticasone propionate and salmeterol
In asthma, adding salmeterol to fluticasone reduced severe exacerbations in a very large safety trial and did not raise serious asthma-related events.
2026-09-30 · 16 min read
MedicationsGabapentin
For postherpetic neuralgia and painful diabetic neuropathy, Cochrane found moderate-quality evidence that roughly 1 more person in 6 or 7 gets substantial pain relief than on placebo.
2026-09-30 · 13 min read
MedicationsHydrochlorothiazide and lisinopril
For blood pressure, the strongest evidence is for the thiazide half: a Cochrane review of first-line drugs found high-quality evidence that low-dose thiazides reduced death and cardiovascular events against placebo.
2026-09-30 · 19 min read
MedicationsIbuprofen
For short-term pain, the evidence is strong and quantified: a Cochrane review of 72 placebo-controlled trials found that about 54% of people given ibuprofen 400 mg after surgery got at least 50% pain relief.
2026-09-30 · 21 min read
MedicationsInsulin Lispro
The evidence is that insulin lispro lowers blood glucose and, compared with older regular human insulin, produces a slightly lower HbA1c and somewhat fewer hypoglycaemic episodes in type 1 diabetes.
2026-09-30 · 15 min read
MedicationsLamotrigine
For epilepsy the evidence is strong and consistent: added to other drugs in drug-resistant focal epilepsy it nearly doubles the chance of halving seizure frequency (RR 1.80, moderate certainty).
2026-09-30 · 28 min read
MedicationsMethocarbamol
Its own manufacturer's label says its mechanism has not been established in humans and may simply reflect general sedation of the central nervous system rather than a specific muscle-relaxing action. Small randomized trials show modest short-term benefit when combined with an NSAID.
2026-09-30 · 10 min read
MedicationsParoxetine
The literature supports paroxetine as modestly more effective than placebo for adult depression, in line with other antidepressants, on evidence the largest network meta-analysis rated moderate to very low certainty.
2026-09-30 · 18 min read
MedicationsPravastatin
For people who have not yet had a cardiovascular event, the Cochrane review of statins as a class found reductions in death from any cause (OR 0.86).
2026-09-30 · 17 min read
MedicationsPregabalin
Limited evidence. Pregabalin's benefit is real but narrow and condition-specific.
2026-09-30 · 26 min read
MedicationsPropranolol
Well established. The strongest outcome evidence is in two places.
2026-09-30 · 17 min read
MedicationsQuetiapine
For the conditions it is approved for, the evidence is real but narrower than the prescribing suggests.
2026-09-30 · 21 min read
MedicationsSemaglutide
Large randomised trials show substantial weight loss (about 15% at 68 weeks versus 2.4% on placebo) and fewer heart attacks.
2026-09-30 · 19 min read
MedicationsSpironolactone
Well established. The evidence differs sharply by use.
2026-09-30 · 24 min read
MedicationsTirzepatide
Large industry-funded trials show substantial weight loss in obesity, better blood sugar than semaglutide in type 2 diabetes, fewer breathing pauses in sleep apnoea.
2026-09-30 · 11 min read
MedicationsZolpidem
The best evidence for zolpidem is short-term trial evidence in insomnia, and the measured effect is modest: pooled analysis of the trials submitted to the FDA found it shortened the time to fall asleep by about 22 minutes versus placebo.
2026-09-30 · 25 min read
MedicationsBaclofen
It is approved to reduce spasticity from multiple sclerosis and spinal cord disease, though a Cochrane review found the trial evidence for anti-spasticity drugs in MS poorly documented.
2026-09-30 · 13 min read