Richard Lord (MetaMetrix) - Lab Tests to Track CR Results
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He has been in charge of analyzing the detailed testing we human
CRonies have done for the ongoing CR study, the one with Dr. Weindruch
and Dr. Fontana Fontana.

Eats ad lib diet - eats well, reasonably thin, but doesnt restrict
calories.

Philosophy - In life, do what you enjoy, and do more of it.

Believes targeted supplementation is a good idea, based on personalized
testing.

Applied testing methodology to 11 of us CRonies (including me!)

Compare our results against general patient population, and within
our group.

Goal: Define what is "Optimal Nutrition" in CRON.

Yeast has so few essential nutrients compared with people, because yeast
dont have nearly as much to do as we do. So animal nutrition experiments
may not be all that relevant for us.

Reasons for Testing:
o     Identify hidden nutrient insufficiencies
o     Track aging markers - e.g. oxidative damage
o     Demonstrate beneficial metabolic changes
o       Demonstrate benefits first, than fold in results into national
        health policy
o     Check disease risk factors - heart disease, cancer, osteoporosis

Molecular Medicine:
o     Genomics - DNA base sequences
o     Proteomics - concentrations and structure of proteins
o     Metabolomics - How they all interact w/ each other

What you may see in his lab tests:
o     Nutrient deficiencies
o     Toxicant challenges
o     Cell regulator issues - hormones and messengers
o     Genetic uniquenesses

Very complex - we understand relatively little of all this.

Goal: Individually customized nutrient support for optimal wellness.

Listed the essential nutrients for humans, and tests they do to 
measure them.

Low arginine is very common in CRonies. But very good heart 
disease status.

Many CRonies have high apparent lipid peroxidation and DNA repair.

Many CRonies have high gut bacterial growth - probiotics + fiber
 - could be bad - they may be producing toxins.

Many dramatic differences between CRonies and typical population.
What does it all mean?  Who knows. They could be good or could be bad.

Oxidative stress markers and high gut bacteria may be related - gut
is metabolically very active, and extra yeast/bacteria may require
lots of metabolic activity to detoxify - resulting in oxidative stress.
Who knows?