Figure Intro 1 Cityscape Every city ages in very different ways, just like your body can. This rich metaphor – the geography is like your genes, roads are like arteries, the energy grid is like your brain circuitry, the green spaces are like your skin – describes the beauty of an elegant city.

      You? Consider yourself the mayor, with the power to make all the decisions about what’s best for your biological city.

      Our ultimate goal isn’t just to keep your biological city from naming tumbleweed as the town flower – in other words, to keep you from dying (though that is a biggie). Our goal is to put your body at the top of the “ten best cities to live in” list. It’s to make it vibrant and hip, with lots of resources and good management of those resources. Perhaps most of all, it’s to give it the ability to adjust rapidly to changing times – to reinvent itself.

      How will you get to know your city and all of the things that influence it? Here’s how we’re going to introduce it to you: science has pointed to fourteen major processes that drive almost all of the ageing we experience. Those causes of ageing – everything from wear and tear to neurotransmitter imbalances – indicate the tools you’ll need to get at what you really want: to help your body live younger and stronger, and to have more energy than a Labrador puppy.

      Throughout the book, you’ll encounter these causes of ageing in special sections titled “Major Ager”; in the chapters between, you’ll discover exactly how the Major Agers affect various parts of your body and find specific, practical suggestions about how you can counteract their effects. Understanding the reasons for ageing will give you insights into the action steps for extending your own warranty, which we unveil in the last chapter.

      Along the way, look for these features to help you learn about your body:

       YOU Tools

      Detailed programmes that will help you live longer

       Anger-Management Plan

       Quit-Smoking Plan

       Deep-sleep Programme

       Medical Tests You Need

       Ultimate Workup

       Deep Breathing and Meditation

       Stress Management

       Vital Vitamins and Supplements

       Detox Plan

       The YOU2 Workout

       Chi-gong Workout

      YOU: The Principles of Longevity

      It turns out that one of the best predictors of ageing isn’t how slowly you drive or whether or not you wear tartan trousers. It’s your own perception of how healthy you are. So indulge us for a moment and answer this question:

      How healthy are you compared to other people your age?

      If you selected fair or bad, you’re thirty times more likely to die in the next two years. If that’s not enough to scare the cream cake right out of your mouth, then we’re not sure what is. But we’re not in the business of trying to frighten you to make changes; we simply want you to see that you’re responsible for making your own “most livable city” list. Are you happy in your body? Do you want to live there? Where do you rank your own health? Would it top anyone’s list?

      The answers to these questions provide the ultimate answer to how long and well you will live. Why? Because the truth is that you are likely to have a gut feeling about how well you’re living; about how healthy you are and about your personal weak links. Your innate feelings about your body may lead to the ultimate insight – that you may not be heading in the right direction. Luckily, science is here to help. And given what science has uncovered recently (recently, as in some of this stuff could never have been talked about ten or even five years ago), you’re going to be able to make the changes.