By Lauren Keating

No matter how far we’ve come of views on beauty standards, the societal pressures to stay young and reverse signs of aging remain present. From luxury skincare serums to cryotherapy chambers, fillers and injectables, NAD+, biohacking, and more, the pursuit to find the fountain of youth has evolved into a multibillion-dollar industry. 
   “There's a lot of emphasis nowadays on kind of looking young on the outside,” said Dr. Kavin Mistry. But when digging underneath the skin of the obsession of anti-aging, comes one realization: people aren’t just trying to look younger—they’re desperate to feel younger. 
   “Why are we not addressing the primal root cause. How old are you on the inside? How old are you, biologically?” he added. “Currently biological age is leading chronological age. People are obsessed with aging, but it's such a surface thing. If you're not healing your body from within, there's no way to then outrun that clock.” 

  Those with high stress, who consume a processed diet, and have poor sleep habits, may find that their biological age—the true measure of cellular and metabolic health—is years older than their actual age. As a result, our chronological age often doesn’t match the age at which our bodies truly function. 
 
Dr. Mistry noticed a discrepancy between people's chronological and biological age early in his medical career as an intern. We witnessed 30 and 40-year-olds developing heart disease. Now as board-certified neuroradiologist with over 25 years of experience, he continues to see the pattern. “Seeing people's bodies from the inside out, your body will not lie to me on my screen because I know exactly how old you are,” he said. “I started seeing that people were biologically much older than the birthdays that we celebrate.” 
  This sparked his writing of the book Primal Health Design, which introduces seven core paradigms for biological age reversal, replacing vanity quick fixes with practical and sustainable tips that target the root causes of premature aging. 
  People are first and foremost concerned about their physical health, how much they weigh and how their body functions. For optimizing physical health, there are three key paradigms: Earth, body, and food.   
  “When I talk about connection with Earth, it's aligning with the Earth cycle or more or less the Circadian rhythm,” he said. Despite setting a morning routine or powering through with coffee to get the day started, Dr. Mistry said we cannot outsmart the Earth's timing. “When you learn to live in alignment with that, everything in your body approves because everything in your body is aligned with the Earth cycle in terms of hormone production, cortisol, and melatonin.” This means putting the phone down to prevent blue light from keeping us awake longer at bedtime. It also means physically touching soil and being intentional with our relationship to the environment. Take a hike in the fall or meditate outside barefoot. 
  The body rises and sets with the sun. While ocean tides change with cycles of the moon, 
Dr. Mistry said the same changes occur in the fluids in your body. “It’s surprising how much your body responds to the earth—not just with the sun, but even with the moon—so that when we're in sync with the cycle, the healthier we are.” 
  People spend more time on screens and sitting at desks. To reverse aging, Dr. Mistry said people need to reconnect to their body and notice its existence in space, his second paradigm. “You may not be aware of what position your neck is in. Is it properly aligned to optimize your health? Is your spine properly aligned? And when we connect with our body, we have a better sense of proprioception, and with that, proper alignment comes optimal health, and many things in our body improve.” 
 

But Dr. Mistry’s final three paradigms are those that are rarely talked about and are the most overlooked pillars of health. These are: purpose, connection with tribe/ establishing strong relationships, and connection with our finiteness. 
  To remain youthful, Dr. Mistry argues that people should be living a life that aligns with who they are. While many find themselves stuck in careers that pay the bills but don’t bring happiness, they often are faced with health issues linked to stress and anxiety. 

  “Why let society determine where you should go rather than your inner calling?
I think that people don't pay attention to that.” 

  This doesn’t mean quitting a job and getting in financial turmoil. “It's customizing your job to fit that picture and those values of who you want to be,” he said. This could be talking to the boss about leading a more creative project, teaching on the side, or starting a side business. “When you then implement that,” Dr. Mistry said, “You will be much more fulfilled, and you'll be more alive.” 
  People also need to practice self-love, which then allows for developing a strong sense of community and support from others. “Your self-image and self-concept are so strong that you attract others because you become this person that has that inner connection, and that you attract people naturally.” 
  People also need to accept that we are mortal. Where many doctors avoid this topic in health literature and self-health books, Dr. Mistry is brave to present this topic head on. “We doom scroll and binge-watch Netflix as if there are endless tomorrows. In reality, it’s a brief time. It's a brief time to make a difference, and it raises this paradox that when we think we have an infinite life or endless tomorrows, we start doing very finite things,” he said. “But when we realize it's a finite life, then you start chasing infinite things, where you start saying, ‘How can I really make a difference? What's my legacy?’ 

Making this shift in thoughts and action can change a person’s life, improving health and vitality. Dr. Mistry said that following these tips, people will start to see changes within a few weeks, with improvements and changes in energy. It takes up to 90 days for there to be improvements to biochemical markers, such as those that measure inflammation and blood chemistry. It is then that cells will revitalize and rewind the clock. “That's the goal to age backwards biologically,” he said. 
  His advice to those looking to lead healthier lives is to first get down the first three pillars. 
After improving physical health, people can then dive deeper into the final four to develop a more holistic approach to their personal health journey. 
  Perhaps the foundation of youth isn’t a needle, pill, or cream. But instead achieving youthfulness can be achieved by looking at the world through the primal lens of a child that is less influence by the world and grounded more in nature. The message is that if we go back to a more primal approach, we will be able to slow that ticking clock and live a more meaningful, happier and healthier life—and look good living it. 

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