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.
579 items
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
SupplementsPassionflower
Limited evidence. It is sold for nervousness and sleep. The strongest synthesis, a Cochrane review.
2026-09-30 · 10 min read
SupplementsPeppermint oil
The best-quantified use is irritable bowel syndrome, where a 2022 meta-analysis of ten randomised trials found peppermint oil beat placebo for global symptoms and abdominal pain but rated the evidence very low quality by GRADE and found significantly more adverse events.
2026-09-30 · 14 min read
SupplementsPlant sterols and plant stanols
This is the best-evidenced of the three ingredients in this group for its stated effect, and the most clearly bounded.
2026-09-30 · 14 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
ResearchDo probiotics help after bowel preparation or colonoscopy?
Limited evidence. Results are mixed.
2026-09-30 · 7 min read
ResearchDo probiotics or synbiotics taken during or after antibiotics help?
Pooled randomised evidence shows fewer episodes of antibiotic-associated diarrhoea when a probiotic is taken alongside antibiotics.
2026-09-30 · 14 min read
MedicationsPropranolol
Well established. The strongest outcome evidence is in two places.
2026-09-30 · 17 min read
SupplementsPsyllium husk
Psyllium has one of the stronger evidence bases among fibre supplements for lowering LDL cholesterol.
2026-09-30 · 9 min read
SupplementsPterostilbene
The most reliable human finding about pterostilbene is an unwanted one: in the only substantial randomised trial of metabolic effects, LDL cholesterol rose by about 17 mg/dL with pterostilbene taken alone.
2026-09-30 · 14 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
FastingReligious partial fasts
Limited evidence. Evidence is limited to observational studies and short uncontrolled trials.
2026-09-30 · 9 min read
SupplementsResveratrol
Disputed. The human evidence is contested rather than settled.
2026-09-30 · 13 min read
SupplementsRiboflavin
Riboflavin's coenzymes are needed for energy production, growth and metabolism of fats and drugs.
2026-09-30 · 9 min read
SupplementsSaw palmetto
Saw palmetto is sold mainly for urinary symptoms from an enlarged prostate, and this is one of the few supplement questions the evidence has genuinely settled.
2026-09-30 · 14 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
ResearchSmall intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO): how is it diagnosed, how reliable is breath testing, and does rifaximin work?
Limited evidence. The evidence here is limited.
2026-09-30 · 9 min read
MedicationsSpironolactone
Well established. The evidence differs sharply by use.
2026-09-30 · 24 min read
SupplementsSt John's wort
The evidence base is unusually large for a botanical: two systematic reviews covering roughly 29 to 35 randomised trials and 5,000 to 7,000 patients found that standardised hypericum extracts beat placebo for mild to moderate major depression and performed about the same as standard antidepressants, with fewer dropouts for side effects.
2026-09-30 · 15 min read
SupplementsTaurine
Pooled randomised trials show modest average reductions in blood pressure and triglycerides with taurine supplements.
2026-09-30 · 18 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
Fasting16:8 time-restricted eating
Evidence is limited and largely points to no advantage over ordinary calorie restriction. In TREAT (116 adults, 12 weeks) 16:8 eating was no better than three structured meals for weight (-0.26 kg difference.
2026-09-30 · 14 min read
Fasting18:6 time-restricted eating
Limited evidence. Evidence is limited to short trials, 5 to 8 weeks long, with small numbers.
2026-09-30 · 12 min read