Video Description: You may try to control your weight, control what you eat and build daily routines to maintain a healthy lifestyle and a healthy look, but one thing you can’t control or change is the passing of time and your age. Shin-Ichiro Imai, PhD, a professor of developmental biology at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, believes in finding ways for people to age better than ever. He calls it productive aging. Imai is using science to reveal avenues for older people to age in a way that’s healthier, having more energy and becoming more active. He’s motivated by the idea of humans having a metabolism of 10 to 20 years younger as they age. Studying basic mechanisms of aging and longevity, Imai had some breakthrough discoveries in his lab. Among the latest, identifying a previously unknown route for cellular fuel delivery. It’s a finding that could shed light on the process of aging and chronic diseases that accompany aging. Aging cells gradually lose their ability to take in and process fuel. By boosting the energy supply of aging cells, researchers hope to slow aging.

• Provide the video for students who are doing independent projects on medical discoveries or other medical/health related topics.
• Consider using this and other videos on the website that deal with aging as part of a student activity that includes student interaction with older adults.