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Friday, October 30, 2026 ยท MEN'S EDITION
LongevityMorning
What's new in feeling better and living longer. 5-minute read.
Good morning. Today: a next-gen weight-loss drug went head to head with Ozempic, how protein sources tracked with testosterone, and a simple wall exercise tied to lower blood pressure.
01 ยท GLP-1s ยท WEIGHT LOSS
Retatrutide doubled Ozempic's weight loss in a head-to-head trial
In an 80-week Phase 3 trial of 1,298 adults with type 2 diabetes, Eli Lilly's experimental drug retatrutide led to 19.5% to 20.9% weight loss vs. 9.4% on the highest diabetes dose of semaglutide (Ozempic), Lilly announced Oct. 28.
Why it matters: Retatrutide, a weekly injection that acts on three hormone receptors (GIP, GLP-1 and glucagon), isn't FDA-approved but has drawn wide interest, including on the gray market. This is its first Phase 3 trial against another drug in its class.
The details: Both retatrutide doses cut A1C by 2.2 points from an average of 8.3%, vs. 1.8 points with semaglutide. Starting weight averaged about 226 lb, so that's roughly 44 to 47 lb lost on retatrutide vs. 21 lb on semaglutide. Non-HDL cholesterol, triglycerides and systolic blood pressure also improved more on retatrutide.
Yes, but: These are topline results from the drugmaker, not yet peer reviewed, and the trial was open-label. Quitting due to side effects was more common on retatrutide (4.8% and 7.9%) than semaglutide (2.7%), and stomach side effects were most common in all groups. No approval timeline was given. Talk to your doctor.
Source: AJMC
02 ยท NUTRITION ยท HORMONES
Men who ate more plant protein had slightly higher testosterone
In 2,546 Finnish men aged 42 to 60, those who ate the most plant protein had total testosterone about 1.1 nmol/L higher than those who ate the least, while the top animal-protein group averaged about 1.2 nmol/L lower.
Why it matters: High-protein eating is popular with men who lift, and this University of Eastern Finland study looked at whether the source of that protein tracked with hormone levels.
The details: Diets came from four-day food records collected in 1984โ1989 in the long-running Kuopio Ischaemic Heart Disease Risk Factor Study. More dairy protein was tied to lower testosterone and SHBG, a protein that carries testosterone in the blood; meat protein was tied to lower SHBG but not testosterone. Results were adjusted for age, BMI and other factors. Published in the International Journal of Food Sciences and Nutrition.
Yes, but: It's a cross-sectional snapshot, so it can't show cause and effect. "Although the observed differences in testosterone concentrations were statistically significant, they were relatively small," said doctoral researcher Miika Wynne-Ellis, adding it isn't possible to say whether they matter for health. Funding wasn't reported.
03 ยท TRAINING ยท HEART HEALTH
Wall squats lowered blood pressure, but the gains faded when people stopped
In a randomized trial of 100 adults, a four-week home wall-squat program lowered blood pressure, and those who kept it up three times a week finished eight weeks with systolic pressure 13.73 mmHg lower on average.
Why it matters: Wall squats are an isometric exercise that needs no equipment, and the study tested how often people had to keep going to hold on to the effect.
The details: Participants averaged 37.4 years old, had normal to high-normal blood pressure and weren't on blood pressure medication. After four weeks of training, groups continued three, two or one times a week, or stopped. Systolic pressure ended 6.95 mmHg lower than at the start in the twice-weekly group and 6.56 mmHg lower in the once-weekly group. Published in BMJ Open Sport & Exercise Medicine.
Yes, but: In the group that stopped, the improvements reversed and were no different from the control group by the end. The maintenance phase lasted only four weeks, and the researchers said longer studies are needed. The summary didn't report funding.
RESOURCES ยท TOOLS WE LOVE
Longevity resources
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WATCH, LISTEN, SCROLL ยท THE BEST OF THE WEEK
Can't Miss Longevity Content
The videos, posts and podcasts everyone's talking about.
PODCAST
Mind Pump: 2977, The 5 Things That Actually Add Years to Your Life, With Dr. Stephen Cabral
New Oct. 28, the hosts and Dr. Stephen Cabral talk through lifestyle factors linked to a longer life, plus their take on GLP-1 drugs and supplements.
PODCAST
Perform with Dr. Andy Galpin: How to Get Faster | Les Spellman
New Oct. 28, speed coach Les Spellman explains how acceleration, deceleration, agility and strength are built, for athletes of different ages.
PODCAST
The Dr. Gabrielle Lyon Show: Essential Amino Acids Explained
New Oct. 29, a compilation on protein quality, leucine and BCAAs and how amino acids relate to muscle with age, a companion to today's protein story.
PODCAST
The Model Health Show: Can You Reverse Biological Aging? With Dr. Josh Axe
Out Oct. 27, Josh Axe on inflammation, nutrition, sleep and cellular repair, drawing on his book Heal Your Cells.
Quick Hits
Lifting after 60. In a 12-week randomized trial of 60 adults aged 60 to 75 in Brazil, supervised resistance training improved breathing-muscle strength, grip strength and sit-to-stand performance vs. a no-exercise group and lowered the inflammation marker IL-6, per the Journal of Functional Morphology and Kinesiology. JFMK
Sauna and immune cells. In 51 adults averaging 50 years old, one 30-minute sauna session with a cold shower midway briefly raised every type of white blood cell measured, with neutrophils and lymphocytes back to baseline within 30 minutes; the University of Eastern Finland researchers said it doesn't show a lasting immune benefit. ScienceDaily
Daylight and dementia. Among 87,577 adults who wore wrist sensors and were followed a median of 8.1 years, average daytime light above 1,000 lux was tied to a 16% lower dementia risk, per General Psychiatry; the study shows an association only. ScienceDaily
Saturated fat, low carb. In a secondary analysis of a trial of 193 Norwegian adults with obesity followed up to two years, a very low-carb diet with about a third of calories from saturated fat raised LDL 5% to 10% but lowered triglycerides and didn't raise ApoB; the authors said the LDL rise can't be assumed harmless. News-Medical
See you tomorrow morning.
LongevityMorning is for informational purposes only and isn't medical advice.
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