Latest / Empower Your Menopause / Episode 54: Age Powerfully — Beauty, Longevity, and the Confidence to Age on Your Own Terms

Transcript

Episode 54: Age Powerfully — Beauty, Longevity, and the Confidence to Age on Your Own Terms · Empower Your Menopause

• 0:13
  SPEAKER_02: Hello, hello, and welcome back to another episode of Empower Your Menopause, the show that helps you navigate health, hormones, and happiness so you can thrive in midlife.
• 0:23
  SPEAKER_02: It's Coach James here, and don't worry, Julie's on her way.
• 0:26
  SPEAKER_02: I'm just re-recording the intro, as when we did it live, my mic was playing up and the sound's not too great.
• 0:31
  SPEAKER_02: When Julie comes on, she's going to be with a special guest and we're going to dive into a conversation that actually glows quite literally because let's be honest, midlife can sometimes feel like a war zone between what's happening inside your body and what's showing up in the mirror.
• 0:45
  SPEAKER_02: But what if aging didn't have to feel like a slow decline?
• 0:48
  SPEAKER_02: What if it could actually be a power move?
• 0:50
  SPEAKER_02: When Julie comes on, then we're going to be joined by the brilliant Dr.
• 0:53
  SPEAKER_02: Lubna Khan Salim, a former NHS plastic and reconstructive surgeon who now specializes in longevity, regenerative aesthetics, and helping women feel fabulous in their skin again.
• 1:04
  SPEAKER_02: She's the founder of Bloom Longevity Labs.
• 1:07
  SPEAKER_02: She's leading a new wave of science-backed, deeply personal approaches to beauty and health.
• 1:11
  SPEAKER_02: No fillers, filters, or fluff required.
• 1:14
  SPEAKER_02: So if you've ever felt stuck between wanting to feel better and look better, this one's for you.
• 1:18
  SPEAKER_02: So let's get into it.
• 1:20
  SPEAKER_02: Dr.
• 1:20
  SPEAKER_02: Lovner, welcome.
• 1:22
  SPEAKER_02: Tell us a little bit about yourself.
• 1:24
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, thank you.
• 1:25
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you so much, James and Julie.
• 1:27
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you very much for having me on the podcast.
• 1:30
  SPEAKER_00: So, as you said, my background, um, I trained in plastics and reconstructive surgery in the NHS.
• 1:36
  SPEAKER_00: Um, I had an NHS career for 12 years, and then um after the birth of my I've got two little girls, um, I decided I really wanted to create something of my own.
• 1:46
  SPEAKER_00: So I created um my own clinic with the view that um I felt there really wasn't a safe space for women of a certain age to be able to explore aesthetics, cosmetics, and sort of like to get a handle really on what's happening with the aging process.
• 2:04
  SPEAKER_00: And what I found um over the last sort of like few years since opening the clinic is that the clinic became an echo chamber of how women of a certain age are made to feel, particularly from the beauty and cosmetic industry.
• 2:17
  SPEAKER_00: There's that invisibility and also that expectation with the anti-aging narrative.
• 2:21
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and because I'm a woman also, I'm I'm 47 in perimenopause, you know, I'm my own customer.
• 2:28
  SPEAKER_00: So I just felt that there was a real space to create something which empowered women into in the aging process instead of making them feel like they had to do something externally to change how they feel and also to connect the dots because I'm from a medical background and because I've come from a background where you know, in the industry, you know, women have never been included in medical research.
• 2:52
  SPEAKER_00: We're still very much behind in terms of understanding the unique needs of women as they age.
• 2:57
  SPEAKER_00: Um, you know, longevity really has become my passion because for me, longevity for women is about navigating perimenopause, menopause, and the rest of your life.
• 3:06
  SPEAKER_00: We're living longer, you know, we live more than a third of our lives in menopause and beyond.
• 3:11
  SPEAKER_00: So it's kind of like you know, women really need to be seen and to be able to navigate that process, but without it being that pressure to change who you are externally and to feel confidence and to feel empowered, and you know, so that's where Bloom Longevity Labs was born.
• 3:31
  SPEAKER_02: You talk about longevity rather than anti-aging, and I know we've had this conversation off-camera before.
• 3:37
  SPEAKER_02: What is the difference for you between the two?
• 3:40
  SPEAKER_02: I know you're not a big fan of the term anti-aging.
• 3:43
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, um, anti-aging's got that negative connotation because it's you know, traditionally when we think of anti-aging, it's always to do with skin products or the beauty industry, and there's always like some super magical elixir of youth that we're sort of like sold to, um, particularly as women.
• 4:01
  SPEAKER_00: You know, I feel like women are psychologically, financially always on the back burner because you know, there's this pressure to look and feel a certain way and to be youthful.
• 4:11
  SPEAKER_00: So, anti-aging for me is that negativity.
• 4:14
  SPEAKER_00: Whereas I feel like longevity gives us more ambition for ourselves in terms of the whole picture, that holistic approach to aging, our bodies, our health.
• 4:25
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and isn't and there's nothing wrong.
• 4:26
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, don't get me wrong, I come from a cosmetic background, you know, cosmetic surgeon.
• 4:30
  SPEAKER_00: So there's nothing wrong in wanting to feel and look your best.
• 4:33
  SPEAKER_00: That's very human, and that's part of our human human nature.
• 4:37
  SPEAKER_00: Um, you know, I love fashion, I love beauty, I hold an annual um event in Yorkshire for British Beauty Week.
• 4:44
  SPEAKER_00: So I very much understand that want to feel and look your best.
• 4:48
  SPEAKER_00: But longevity is about living for as long as possible in the best health, and that is that sort of like I think lovely ambition for you know being able to understand, have agency over your body, understand what's going on with your body, particularly as a woman with all the hormonal shifts.
• 5:05
  SPEAKER_00: And what comes with that, and it's that whole like inside out approach to beauty, as opposed to just sort of like, you know, having the right skincare routine or having to freeze or fill your face to look a certain way and to beat and to meet beauty standards because like the beauty standards are very antiquated, you know, they're they're set for us very much in a sort of like still in a very patriarchal way.
• 5:28
  SPEAKER_00: So it's my little rebellion against against that.
• 5:32
  SPEAKER_01: I love it.
• 5:33
  SPEAKER_01: Well, and I think some of those beauty standards feel basically impossible.
• 5:37
  SPEAKER_01: And the whole idea of anti-aging, we're all aging, there's nothing wrong with aging.
• 5:40
  SPEAKER_01: Why would we be anti-aging?
• 5:42
  SPEAKER_01: Because the the alternative isn't very nice, right?
• 5:45
  SPEAKER_01: Um, but I just make sense.
• 5:48
  SPEAKER_00: Sorry, go ahead.
• 5:49
  SPEAKER_01: Go ahead.
• 5:50
  SPEAKER_00: So, like you say, that it just doesn't make sense.
• 5:52
  SPEAKER_00: It's paradoxical, you know, to anti-age.
• 5:54
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, no one has ever the goalposts are always changing.
• 5:57
  SPEAKER_00: So when has anyone ever successfully anti-aged?
• 6:00
  SPEAKER_00: Unless you're Cher.
• 6:02
  SPEAKER_01: Well, yeah, with lots and lots of help, I imagine.
• 6:05
  SPEAKER_01: Um but it one one of the things we hear a lot from our clients is that they feel like they are becoming invisible.
• 6:12
  SPEAKER_01: So when it comes to reframing beauty and body confidence after 40, what what is your like what is your take on that?
• 6:20
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, we talked about you you talked about longevity.
• 6:23
  SPEAKER_01: Can you go into a little more detail about what that looks like for you and your practice?
• 6:28
  SPEAKER_00: Absolutely.
• 6:29
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so like I said, I feel that sort of like as you enter perimenopause, it's a real pivotal time in our lives um to sort of course correct and to get to the point.
• 6:41
  SPEAKER_00: Because what I found was when clients were coming to see me, because particularly within the health system in the UK, you know, women aren't really taught or we're not really given that um knowledge about what's happening with our bodies to be able to connect the dots.
• 6:57
  SPEAKER_00: As you know, with perimenopause and menopause, you know, from the top of our head to our toes, you know, the decline in the hormones affects every system.
• 7:06
  SPEAKER_00: So there's like, you know, over 70 symptoms that possibly could could happen.
• 7:11
  SPEAKER_00: And so it's kind of like trying to connect the dots between how you're feeling, what's happening with you, and that sort of like time period in a woman's life is a lovely opportunity to to actually have an MOT and course correct so that you navigate the the next part of your life um in a really positive manner with like your you can feel empowered because it's like the lifestyle choices that you make.
• 7:34
  SPEAKER_00: You know, we always sort of like preach in the clinic, it's it's about the low-hanging fruit.
• 7:38
  SPEAKER_00: So it's all the things that you can do which are simple and we all know about, but it's you know, we just don't do because we always want we live in a society where it's you know, next day delivery, everything's instantaneous, it's a band-aid, it's a pill for every ill.
• 7:53
  SPEAKER_00: Whereas it is like the really simple tenets of wellness that we take for granted.
• 7:58
  SPEAKER_00: So how you eat, how you move, how you sleep, how we navigate stress as women, because this you know is so much honest and that constant stress that we have.
• 8:06
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and also like beautiful things like connection and connectivity and having that tribe you know around you, all those things you know have so much impact in how you age and how well you age.
• 8:18
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so it's for us, it's like reframing that process for you and helping women to see that it isn't the end of the road just because you're getting grey hair or lines and wrinkles are appearing.
• 8:30
  SPEAKER_00: You know, there's things that we can do about that, but it's that sort of like um, you know, like we run retreats based on inspiration from the blue zones around the world.
• 8:38
  SPEAKER_00: And it's those really simple things that you can do in your life to future-proof yourself and to give you that sort of like um vision for yourself.
• 8:47
  SPEAKER_00: I think you know, it's very much connected to how you see yourself in the future and offsetting, you know, frailty, dementia, you know, dependency.
• 8:56
  SPEAKER_00: So that's sort of like our our key aim to keep it really simple.
• 8:59
  SPEAKER_00: Like the problem with the longevity, because it's so so trendy, you know, for us it's not a trend or a buzzword, but it is a buzzy thing, and it's like there's all these amazing gadgets and tests, and you know, the the bro culture.
• 9:13
  SPEAKER_00: So, you know, you have your um, you know, um Brian Johnson, who's recently, you know, the documentary on Netflix, it's all about defeating immortality and living for as long as possible, and all the tech gadgets, but actually, longevity is just something that's humans we've been practicing, and it's it's getting back to I I guess our own natural biology and and how we can sort of like live our best lives.
• 9:38
  SPEAKER_02: It's interesting, isn't it?
• 9:39
  SPEAKER_02: You talked before about how you the basic tenets of health are pretty much the same for everybody, aren't they?
• 9:47
  SPEAKER_02: It's eat better, move a bit more, get more sleep, reduce your your stress.
• 9:52
  SPEAKER_02: What do you think it is that's fueling this drive towards immediacy?
• 9:56
  SPEAKER_02: Because one of the things that we see with our clients when you explain that this is a slow process and getting better habits in place is really, really important.
• 10:07
  SPEAKER_02: They're often in a rush to get there, and I don't know whether that's because they're fueled by commercialism and this idea that you can just get a magic pill from somewhere, the latest supplement, whatever it be.
• 10:17
  SPEAKER_02: I just wondered what your take was on what it is that's driving that immediacy, that everything has to happen right now for your clients.
• 10:26
  SPEAKER_00: It's been the cultural shifts, hasn't it?
• 10:28
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, we live in an era where, particularly, like just say from my industry and aesthetics and um well-being, you know, you have things like winkle reducers like Botox or fillers, which give you that instantaneous effect.
• 10:43
  SPEAKER_00: And so people are just so used to they're wanting to see the effects and they want to have things now, and you want whatever, you know, social media is a huge driver of that.
• 10:53
  SPEAKER_00: We live in an era where, you know, we never used to, when I think about when I was younger and travelling around the world, you know, where we, you know, it was like you're lucky if you could send a postcard home and you didn't have mirrors and you know, your your um phone and to look at yourself all the time.
• 11:08
  SPEAKER_00: Whereas we live in an era where everything is like at our fingertips, and we know we have the most amazing technology in our phones, you know, you've got a camera, you've got a video, you've got, you know, so everything's at our fingertips.
• 11:21
  SPEAKER_00: And so we're just in a very you know, restless era where it's that kind of like that dopamine hit, you know, looking on your phone, um, the way the algorithm is all cleverly geared to towards that, you know, looking at you know how many followers and numbers.
• 11:36
  SPEAKER_00: It's it's just I think it's driven by social media, it's driven by that, you know, Amazon Prime culture.
• 11:42
  SPEAKER_00: And unfortunately, it spills over into everything.
• 11:45
  SPEAKER_00: So that's why it's so so nice, for example, with what you guys do with coaching, is like helping people to get back into that understanding that well-being and um beauty is not a commodity that you can buy, it's a daily practice.
• 11:59
  SPEAKER_00: And as human beings, you know, we need those sort of like um practices and that um those um ambitions to to drive us in terms of you know feeling well.
• 12:11
  SPEAKER_00: It can't be a commercial thing, but unfortunately, like the well-being sector and beauty is very heavily commercialized, it's about what you can buy instead of what you can do.
• 12:22
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, at a time when women are already compromised for time, compromised with stress.
• 12:29
  SPEAKER_02: How much extra stress do you think that drive to look amazing, to be amazing, to always show up?
• 12:36
  SPEAKER_02: How much is that just driving even more stress that then could potentially be fueling even more symptoms?
• 12:44
  SPEAKER_00: It's huge, it's it's like a huge comparison culture, don't we?
• 12:49
  SPEAKER_00: You know, you see everybody's successes on social media, and you know, it's that comparison in terms of um, you know, why aren't I at that level or why aren't I doing that, or why don't I look like that?
• 13:00
  SPEAKER_00: So it's a huge driver, and it is it is really difficult, very, very difficult.
• 13:05
  SPEAKER_00: There's no easy answer.
• 13:06
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, I feel it myself, you know, I'm a mum of I've got, you know, I've done it sort of like the wrong way around.
• 13:12
  SPEAKER_00: I've had my children later in life, and plus I'm trying to run a uh, you know, business and got like you know, parents who are getting elderly, so very much that sandwich generation of trying to navigate it all.
• 13:23
  SPEAKER_00: Um, there's a huge pressure, and I think that's why sometimes it's so nice with in terms of the coaching part of things, well-being, being able to ground people and bring it back and almost like step back and look at things in a very holistic way, so people can sort of like step back and just think actually, like, what is the bigger picture?
• 13:43
  SPEAKER_00: What truly brings me happiness and where do I see myself?
• 13:47
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so that's where all those beautiful sort of like techniques in terms of meditation, journaling, being able to, you know, even just five minutes of being able to be outside in the sunshine or go for a walk and just have some time to yourself is just so important.
• 14:02
  SPEAKER_00: That's why, you know, this kind of work is is really, really essential, I think, to help us to get to that Zen level.
• 14:12
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I love it.
• 14:13
  SPEAKER_01: And we're we're about the micro actions as well.
• 14:16
  SPEAKER_01: And that's I know sometimes that can be frustrating for for women who are accustomed to having thinking they have to do big things and change change everything out at once.
• 14:27
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and you know, I out of curiosity, if if you were setting up kind of a general longevity protocol, what what might that actually look like?
• 14:38
  SPEAKER_01: And we talked about simplifying, we talked about the areas of focus on, but I know that you also have some amazing tools that you use.
• 14:45
  SPEAKER_01: So I'm I'm curious to learn more about that.
• 14:48
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so the way we approach our sort of clients when they come to see us, it's it's very much about meeting people where they are.
• 14:55
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so we spend you know a long time in terms of consultation and getting to know people, um, understanding their broader life, what are the pressures, where are the pain points, which um would you know, in terms of starting points.
• 15:10
  SPEAKER_00: So we go through all of our pillars in terms of nutrition, movement, sleep, stress management, what their overall life looks like, and you know, how they can fit in sort of like anything that we suggest into their lives.
• 15:23
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and then sort of, you know, meeting their expectations.
• 15:27
  SPEAKER_00: For some people, it is all about the general sort of like, you know, aging process in terms of just say the aches and pains, or for other people it is like the more visible lines, wrinkles, pigmentations, skin issues.
• 15:39
  SPEAKER_00: There's a whole realm of things.
• 15:41
  SPEAKER_00: So it's meeting people where they are and then coming up with a program.
• 15:45
  SPEAKER_00: So I call it their patient 365.
• 15:47
  SPEAKER_00: So for the for the year ahead, looking at, you know, what are the goals that we're going to set, how does that fit into their lives, what are the things you know, in terms of so we work with nutritionists, we have dietitians, psychologists, um, health coaches, um, people that on our network that we can refer people to if there's extra sort of like things that they need, and then in terms of like the modalities that you're talking about, um, we can do like health MOT tests.
• 16:12
  SPEAKER_00: So if we're if somebody, for example, is not sure if they're in the perimenopause journey, you know, looking at sort of like different markers in terms of making sure that their thyroid's okay, overall health.
• 16:24
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so an MOT, um, and then in the clinic, you know, we use we use sort of like you know, cutting and edge technology, things like red light, um, hyperbaric oxygen, um, lasers, or you know, various things, but we're really trying to keep it simple for people.
• 16:40
  SPEAKER_00: So things that are because it within the longevity field, it's really, you know, there's loads of exciting things that are on the horizon, just say things like peptides and or the exciting sort of like um drugs and life-extending medications, but we're still very early days, so there's still very much a lot of research to be done.
• 16:59
  SPEAKER_00: So we really want to keep it very evidence-based, very much things that you know people can do within their grasp now, um, and then sort of look to bring things in as they emerge, but with very much rooted in clinical evidence because we come from like medical background, you know, we don't want to jump on every bandwagon, which is very easy to do, but we we try to look at everything like supplements, um, technology from a very evidence-based.
• 17:25
  SPEAKER_00: So, yeah, so things that can incorporate people can incorporate into their lives and do, but we'll give them sort of like the biggest bang for their buck, and also things like energy and um long-term health promoting and things.
• 17:39
  SPEAKER_02: So you've talked a lot around many of the areas that we speak to our clients on.
• 17:45
  SPEAKER_02: Tell us a little bit about the skincare and aesthetics side of the clinic, then.
• 17:51
  SPEAKER_02: What is it that you you do there and how does that differentiate from what other people might be doing in the field?
• 17:57
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so aesthetics is sort of like, particularly in the UK, it is the Wild West, so there's sort of clinics everywhere doing all sorts of what weird and wonderful um things because I come from a medical background, you know, trained as a plastic surgeon, anatomy, physiology, understanding the skin from inside out, and because I approach it from a well-being perspective, um, I like to call it biomimetic aesthetics.
• 18:23
  SPEAKER_00: So we try to work with nature as opposed to against nature.
• 18:27
  SPEAKER_00: So I try to approach things from a very cellular, inside out approach.
• 18:31
  SPEAKER_00: So by understanding, first of all, what's happening with the aging process, what is happening with the skin.
• 18:37
  SPEAKER_00: So now that we have so much knowledge and understanding about the aging process, the effect of UV light on the skin, the effect of lifestyle choices, um, everything within aesthetics, like all the technologies, everything tends to be like the all roads lead to collagen.
• 18:52
  SPEAKER_00: So it's it is about how we protect our own collagen, how we build collagen, and how we replace it and rejuvenate it.
• 18:59
  SPEAKER_00: So everything is regenerative, an inside-out approach, how we can maximize on a very base level, first of all, your lifestyle choices to protect your skin.
• 19:09
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and it's about bringing the skin back to the body because everything gets treated in silos.
• 19:14
  SPEAKER_00: So, whereas you go to your GP for your health, and then you go to your beautician for your skin, for me, everything is like hand in hand, like your health and your um skin well-being, everything's the same size of the coin.
• 19:28
  SPEAKER_00: So, when you're looking after yourself and you feel good, then your skin's gonna look good.
• 19:32
  SPEAKER_00: If you're overdoing it with the sunbeds being out in the sun, then you're gonna affect your skin in terms of pigmentation, more degradation of your collagen.
• 19:40
  SPEAKER_00: So it's about trying to really understand what's happening with the aging process and how we can help to offset lines, wrinkles, pigmentation, all those things that we see externally, but approach from an inside-out approach.
• 19:51
  SPEAKER_00: And then in terms of the in-clinic treatments, you know, we can deal with, you know, we have a dermatologist too, so it's looking at, you know, if you have a skin issue, you know, rosacea, an inflammatory skin condition, um, acne, dealing with those in an evidence-based approach.
• 20:10
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and then if you're looking for sort of like ways to look your best as you get older, then there's sort of like skin biary modelers that we use, things like um sculpture and radius and and beautiful new sort of like I hate to call them fillers, but they're kind of like the new generation of fillers, which actually benefit your skin as to post as opposed to just the filling and freezing approach that we used years ago.
• 20:36
  SPEAKER_00: So that's sort of like very much like the 90s and naughties sort of um look.
• 20:41
  SPEAKER_00: But now it's all about skin health and looking your best, whatever age you are, but without having to try to look like you're in your 20s when you're in your 50s.
• 20:50
  SPEAKER_00: But we say, you know, if you're you're in your 50s and you've just got a face full of filler, you just look like somebody who's in their 50s with filler.
• 20:56
  SPEAKER_00: Whereas we try to approach to where you look your best at any age, um, but from that inside out approach.
• 21:02
  SPEAKER_00: So that's how we try to approach the aesthetic side of things.
• 21:06
  SPEAKER_02: I wonder if you could speak a little bit to um how you see the hormonal journey, stress and sleep sort of combined together and what kind of effect that has on a woman's skin?
• 21:22
  SPEAKER_02: How does that actually show up?
• 21:24
  SPEAKER_02: Um, and what can what can you do about it?
• 21:28
  SPEAKER_00: It's it's huge.
• 21:29
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, you know, lifestyle factors are you know one of the biggest, huge, huge drivers.
• 21:36
  SPEAKER_00: You know, in terms of genetics, I mean, like 15% of genetics are attributed to how we actually age, but 85% of it is down to our lifestyle choices.
• 21:45
  SPEAKER_00: So there's external and internal things that are happening.
• 21:48
  SPEAKER_00: So um, you know, lack of sleep.
• 21:50
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, sleep is one of the I think pivotal pillars of your well being.
• 21:54
  SPEAKER_00: You know, when you sleep well, your your when I talk to people about, for example, skincare routines.
• 22:00
  SPEAKER_00: And you're thinking about your daytime and nighttime routine.
• 22:03
  SPEAKER_00: Nighttime is your time when your skin is recovering, when all that DNA repair is happening, and you know, your skin is sort of like rebuilding and regenerating.
• 22:12
  SPEAKER_00: So sleep is really essential.
• 22:14
  SPEAKER_00: And when you have a lack of sleep, I mean, you know, I've had two, I've got two young girls.
• 22:19
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, my youngest is three, but all those sleepless nights really do have a detriment to your um your skin health.
• 22:25
  SPEAKER_00: So all those tenets of and also like how you eat as well, like nutrition is huge, you know, when you're when you're eating the rainbow and whole whole plant-based foods, and you know, getting all those beautiful plant-based like polyphenols and antioxidants to your skin, makes a huge difference.
• 22:42
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and then managing your stress, like all those the high cortisol levels, so cortisol is a hormone too, and when you have that underlying like inflammation, they call it like the constant drip of the cortisol in your body, then that's going to break down your collagen too.
• 22:58
  SPEAKER_00: So, we all talk, you know, everyone's always like you know you get these creams with collagen in and the treatments that are building collagen, but um you know throughout the aging process, when you have all these external stresses and your lifestyle approaches, they break down your collagen too.
• 23:13
  SPEAKER_00: So it's um all those things are huge.
• 23:15
  SPEAKER_00: So you can have real control over how well you're aging by those simple measures, as we as we mentioned before, and then you can sort of like um double down on your skincare routines with things that are going to protect your collagen.
• 23:30
  SPEAKER_00: So your sun protection factor, you know, wearing sunscreen um when in terms of UVA rays is essential because again, that's protecting your collagen.
• 23:39
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so it's really simple things, you know.
• 23:41
  SPEAKER_00: You don't need a 12-step skincare routine, you just need the right ingredients to be able to future-proof yourself.
• 23:47
  SPEAKER_00: So, you know, so essentially I think I've saved my clients a lot of money because you don't really need too many of the complex things.
• 23:55
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 23:56
  SPEAKER_02: Where do you sit on collagen supplementation then?
• 23:59
  SPEAKER_02: I sense that you're not a huge fan of it, or you're as yet unconvinced, maybe.
• 24:05
  SPEAKER_00: Um, I am, I am.
• 24:06
  SPEAKER_00: I've I've done a lot of research on collagen because I get uh we asked we get asked it frequently, um, and actually, you know, there is some really growing and emerging the trouble with the beauty industry and and supplement industry, because it's not as heavily regulated, like just say, you know, in in hospital, if you were going for just say something like chotherapy, you know, you need a uh heavily randomized control, properly um researched medicines, you know, to be able to use them.
• 24:35
  SPEAKER_00: Whereas when it comes down to beauty products, um particularly beauty products, I mean, there are very little regulations.
• 24:42
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and then similarly with the supplement industry, it can be really difficult to understand what works, what doesn't, you know, we waste a lot of money on things that actually have very little effect.
• 24:52
  SPEAKER_00: Now, collagen is one of those things that actually there are there is research and emerging evidence about their usefulness, um, particularly because when you're trying, so collagen is you know the biggest um contributor to the architecture of our skin.
• 25:08
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and even with a healthy diet, actually, when you're when you take a supplement, it has to, when you take it orally, it has to enter your stomach, and there it has to combat, you know, um your stomach acids and whether it can become bioavailable, which means is it then broken down to be able to become um effective and useful for your body?
• 25:30
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so hydrolyzed collagen, where it's broken down to its monopeptides, has been shown to be effective in terms of getting to your joints, your your skin um anywhere that collagen is needed.
• 25:44
  SPEAKER_00: Now, is there evidence that it particularly goes so when it's broken down and it becomes its like individual peptides?
• 25:51
  SPEAKER_00: Is there evidence that it gets particularly to your skin, hair, and nails?
• 25:55
  SPEAKER_00: Not really, but anecdotally, and you know, people do report that it's um beneficial.
• 26:01
  SPEAKER_00: So it's really difficult to know.
• 26:03
  SPEAKER_00: There are sort of like um, because to do those studies, you'd need to do skin biopsies on people, and like you know, people aren't willing to do, you know, to have like a painful procedure to prove that.
• 26:14
  SPEAKER_00: So it's very difficult to design those studies, but there is evidence to show that when you're, for example, breaking down protein if you've eaten like protein, then they get broken down into dipeptides and tripeptides, which don't supply the individual building blocks.
• 26:28
  SPEAKER_00: That's where hydrolyzed collagen does become useful and effective.
• 26:33
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so there is, you know, there are some studies which show its effectiveness.
• 26:36
  SPEAKER_00: So I wouldn't necessarily poo-poo it and say it's um, you know, I don't agree with them.
• 26:42
  SPEAKER_00: Um, but we just need more research in these things.
• 26:45
  SPEAKER_00: And so, and I mean there's no harm to taking them.
• 26:48
  SPEAKER_00: So I would say the only thing is looking at your budget, people can spend an extraordinary amount of money each month on so many supplements and gadgets and and things, and I just think, you know, where is your best bang for your back in terms of um so you know, if you're not eating a healthy diet, but then you're taking supplements, maybe it's the wrong wrong way around.
• 27:09
  SPEAKER_00: So it's just about the rationale behind these things, so it can be useful.
• 27:13
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, your hair and your nails are made of keratin actually, so they're not collagen, so it's a very different sort of like beast as well.
• 27:21
  SPEAKER_00: So it's understanding the science behind it and actually what is effective and what's not.
• 27:25
  SPEAKER_00: So you can take them, and if you find they're useful, then that's great.
• 27:29
  SPEAKER_00: But you know, I wouldn't say that they should be the top of your list in terms of the supplements you do take, and particularly for women, I'd say, like, you know, the your more essential things are always break it down to, you know, as women, as we enter these big hormonal shifts in our perimenopause and menopausal years, the things that we should be thinking about in terms of our longevity, I always say heart, your bones, your brain, and then your gut and everything else.
• 27:55
  SPEAKER_00: So then when you approach it like that and you understand the impact of what's happening to you, so it's things like your omega-3s are really important.
• 28:02
  SPEAKER_00: So in your diet, your rich oily fishes, but then also your omega-3s, because that's going to help with your heart, your vitamin D, essential in terms of your bones, and offsetting that osteoporosis and you know, the risk of frailty um fractures, that side of things, and then also your brain health, looking at things like creatine, which of is fabulous because so much evidence shows how beneficial it is for women's brains in terms of your mental alertness and your brain fog and things like that.
• 28:30
  SPEAKER_00: So definitely, I think you know, uh there should be a hierarchy in terms of where you're spending your money and what's going to give you the best, best outcome.
• 28:42
  SPEAKER_01: Excellent.
• 28:44
  SPEAKER_01: This is this has been really amazing.
• 28:46
  SPEAKER_01: So so, as far as like if if our listeners needed wanted to do like one thing today or maybe take two small steps today, what what would you suggest the first ones be for them?
• 28:59
  SPEAKER_00: Um, it's that's really difficult.
• 29:01
  SPEAKER_00: I'd say like if it if it's the skin side of things that people are the most sort of concerned with, where your sun protection, it sort of like blows me, blows my mind when like you know, people just don't do that.
• 29:13
  SPEAKER_00: Because there's this whole army of people.
• 29:15
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, this is where social media gets very, you know, very, very um complicated.
• 29:20
  SPEAKER_00: And there's lots of people who will be like, you know, sun protection is toxic and it stops you from get making vitamin D, and it's sort of like you know, you need to get sunlight, and absolutely you do.
• 29:32
  SPEAKER_00: So, but it's about sun safety and understanding um what you're doing in terms of sun protection.
• 29:38
  SPEAKER_00: So, in order to make vitamin D from your skin, you actually don't need masses of sun exposure, you need about 10 to 15 minutes outdoor in the sun.
• 29:46
  SPEAKER_00: And morning sunlight is absolutely safe.
• 29:49
  SPEAKER_00: So you're looking, you're thinking about your UV index, and uh you know, nowadays with our smartphones, I mean, if you've got your um weather app, um it will tell you the UV index.
• 29:58
  SPEAKER_00: So when the UV index is low, you're safe to be outdoors for a short period of time, but it's like that midday sun, and when the UV index is high and you're on holiday somewhere really hot and you're not you're not used to it, then that's where you have to be really careful.
• 30:13
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and so it's about and also it's about wearing like your big hats and sort of long sleeves, and if you're you know somebody who's lost a lot of hair, then thinking about the areas that we neglect in terms of sun protection, like the tops of our heads, the tops of our ears.
• 30:26
  SPEAKER_00: Because coming from a plastic surgery background where a lot of our bread and butter is skin cancer, you know, we see the effects because it's that accumulative effect of all that sun exposure over time.
• 30:37
  SPEAKER_00: Because literally, from the moment you're born to the time you die, your skin is slowly going through.
• 30:43
  SPEAKER_00: If you think about a retissery chicken, you're slowly sort of like cooking your skin on the outside, and your skin is your biggest sort of like um organ, it's your barrier to the internal.
• 30:54
  SPEAKER_00: So all that exposure of the UV, so there's UVA and UVB, UVA is the aging rate, and UVB is the burning rate.
• 31:01
  SPEAKER_00: So it's about that sun safety, and 80% of sun damage, skin damage and wrinkles is down to UV exposure.
• 31:09
  SPEAKER_00: So it's being sensible with that, and you know, a good you know um uh broad spectrum mineral-based sun protection is really safe and it's like your best bet in terms of offsetting those things.
• 31:21
  SPEAKER_00: So that's my number one.
• 31:22
  SPEAKER_00: And I always say to people, you can supplement a vitamin D deficiency, but you can't supplement a skin cancer.
• 31:28
  SPEAKER_00: And when you have something like a melanoma, which is a life-threatening cancer, then you know, and I've seen you know, I've amputated people's like digits or you know, limbs, or you know, people die from melanoma, then I think you just have to really, really think about that one.
• 31:45
  SPEAKER_00: And then I'd say probably my number two is that connection and and community is really important.
• 31:52
  SPEAKER_00: Social isolation is one of the biggest things that's happening in our society because we no longer live like you know, in big communities or tribes like we when you think about the blue zones, and that for women in particular, because women are living longer, um, you know, social isolation can sometimes be severe social isolation can be akin to smoking 20 a day.
• 32:14
  SPEAKER_00: So making sure you've got that network and that tribe and your friends and that close community around you, I think is one of the most you know beneficial things you can do.
• 32:22
  SPEAKER_00: There's nothing like girlfriend magic, and that feeling you get when you're around your friends and that you know community spirit, I think is really important.
• 32:29
  SPEAKER_00: So I think those are my top two.
• 32:34
  SPEAKER_02: So thank you, Dr.
• 32:35
  SPEAKER_02: Liban.
• 32:36
  SPEAKER_02: It's been fascinating.
• 32:36
  SPEAKER_02: Could you just tell our listeners where they can find out more about you then?
• 32:41
  SPEAKER_02: Where do they go if they want to find out more about what it is that you're up to?
• 32:46
  SPEAKER_00: Of course.
• 32:46
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so on Instagram, I mean it's all about social media, so it's at Bloom Longevity Labs.
• 32:53
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and I also run This Is Yorkshire Beauty.
• 32:56
  SPEAKER_00: So we run a beauty club called the Betty's, and that is all about connection, connection, and and commute fostering a sense of community and purpose with women.
• 33:06
  SPEAKER_00: So we run a lot of events, um, so sort of mindfulness events, yoga.
• 33:11
  SPEAKER_00: We have a big um beauty festival at Grantley Hall.
• 33:13
  SPEAKER_00: I have a clinic at Grantley Hall as well, so yeah, all over Yorkshire, really.
• 33:17
  SPEAKER_00: But um, yeah, you'll see lots of uh exciting events coming up.
• 33:22
  SPEAKER_01: Terrific.
• 33:23
  SPEAKER_01: We'll be sure to share everything in our show notes so listeners can can find you there.
• 33:27
  SPEAKER_01: This has been just so powerful and really full of hope and and practical information.
• 33:34
  SPEAKER_01: So we'd just like to say thank you very, very much.
• 33:38
  SPEAKER_01: My pleasure.
• 33:41
  SPEAKER_01: Before we go, we always ask one question of our of our guests, and that is what's one thing you wish every woman over 40 knew about aging or longevity?
• 33:52
  SPEAKER_00: Um I'd say that the the best is yet to come.
• 33:57
  SPEAKER_00: You know, we always look with a backward view as if like, you know, it's life is over when we get to us, you know, get to 40s, but I I find it really exciting.
• 34:06
  SPEAKER_00: I think it's so empowering the aging process.
• 34:08
  SPEAKER_00: We're so lucky to age um and to have all those years ahead of us.
• 34:13
  SPEAKER_00: It's exciting.
• 34:14
  SPEAKER_00: And I see so many of my sort of community, the women that I sort of serve, having like their second and third lives.
• 34:21
  SPEAKER_00: It's amazing, and it's really inspiring.
• 34:24
  SPEAKER_00: You know, this life doesn't end when you get to 60.
• 34:26
  SPEAKER_00: You know, by by 2040, over um two-thirds of the population in the UK, um, sorry, a quarter of the population in the UK will be over 65.
• 34:36
  SPEAKER_00: So we all need to really change our view on aging to feel positive about it and how we as a society navigate that.
• 34:45
  SPEAKER_00: And um, you know, we're because we'll be the next up to back to be the elderly.
• 34:49
  SPEAKER_00: And what does that mean for us and what does that mean for you?
• 34:52
  SPEAKER_00: So I think it's that positivity that aging is a really positive and empowering stage in our lives, and um, we're lucky to lucky to see it.
• 35:01
  SPEAKER_01: Absolutely.
• 35:02
  SPEAKER_01: As a 61-year-old woman, I couldn't agree more.
• 35:06
  SPEAKER_01: So great.
• 35:08
  SPEAKER_01: Well, well, well, thank you very much for being here today.
• 35:12
  SPEAKER_01: This has been just really amazing discussion.
• 35:14
  SPEAKER_01: And we'd like to ask our listeners if um if you liked it, please subscribe and share it with a friend who needs a reminder that she can age powerfully and on her own terms.
• 35:26
  SPEAKER_01: And if you're curious about where you are in your own health journey, um, we offer a menopause impact assessment, which is a great look into some evidence-based measurements that you can have a look at to see how you're doing and get some guidance from us as your expert coaches.
• 35:44
  SPEAKER_01: So we'll put that link down in the show notes as well.
• 35:48
  SPEAKER_01: So thanks for joining us today.
• 35:50
  SPEAKER_01: And we're coaches James and Julie of Fabulous Beyond, reminding you to go get back to yourself fully and stay fabulous.
• 35:59
  SPEAKER_01: We'll see.