The Vitamin You Can’t Bottle: Connection

Plus first chance for Club Members to enter the April raffle

I’m Brandon Wilson. I am constantly working toward improving my mind, body, and spirit using various ancient techniques and cutting-edge biohacking tools and devices. I want to be healthy, but not at the expense of being happy. This simple idea is what it means to be wellthy.

For the reasonable price of $6 per month/$60 per year, you will receive valuable content, including access to the entire archive of over 230 newsletters, members-only content, audio voiceovers (with extra content and always read by me), participation in the brain training raffle to win monthly biohacking gift bags, and access to the Be Wellthy Club private Facebook group.

First time reading? Let’s get you in the club.

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At the Biohacking Conference in Beverly Hills in September of 2022.

Think back to 2020 and 2021 when we were in the thick of the pandemic precipitated by Everyone’s Favorite Virus™️. Remember the lockdowns, facemasks, social distancing, and forced isolation? It was rough, even for an introvert like me. This worldwide experiment proved just how important social connection is to our lives.

The OG biohacker Dave Asprey uses the model of the Four F’s to explain his understanding of the algorithm of life.

1. Fear - First and foremost, we have to survive. We are biologically programmed to address fear first.

2. Food - Once no immediate threats exist, we require food to survive.

3. Fertility - Animals have an instinct to reproduce to pass along their genes.

4. Friend - Perhaps this is most important because friendships make us happier and healthier.

The Importance of Social Connection

It is clear how important social connection is when humans are isolated.

If you want to cut someone’s life expectancy in half at any age, put them in isolation. It’s well-documented in the elderly. When you have a companion that you’ve been with for 40, 50, 60 years, and the companion passes, very shortly thereafter, the second companion goes. What we call the Broken Heart Syndrome has nothing to do with a broken heart, but the emotional state. The frequency in the body changes. When the mind surrenders, the body surrenders. —Gary Brecka

Here are a few studies that demonstrate the effects social relationships have on our health.

• A meta-analysis found that actual and perceived social isolation are both associated with increased risk for early mortality. Specifically, loneliness was associated with a 26% increased risk of mortality, social isolation with a 29% increased risk, and living alone with a 32% increased risk.¹

• Another meta-analysis from Brigham Young University revealed that individuals with stronger social relationships had a 50% higher likelihood of survival than those with weaker social relationships.²

• An ongoing Harvard longitudinal study that started in 1938 has been tracking the health and well-being of participants over their lifetimes. The study has demonstrated that strong relationships are key to health and happiness. Robert Waldinger, the current director, has noted, “Loneliness kills. It’s as powerful as smoking or alcoholism.”³

• An analysis of two extensive UK prospective studies found that social isolation was associated with an increased risk of fatal coronary heart disease and stroke events.⁴

For a deep dive into how friendships improve your health and help you live longer, check out Dave Asprey’s interview with Lydia Denworth, author of Friendship: The Evolution, Biology, and Extraordinary Power of Life’s Fundamental Bond.

People never question someone traveling to a music concert or taking a vacation, yet I have repeatedly been asked why I attend health conferences. It’s an opportunity to learn cutting-edge information from biohacking leaders. I get to play with all the cool tech. I can promote this newsletter and my other offerings as a health consultant. But most importantly, it’s a chance to connect with like-minded people. There are so many subscribers and Club Members whom I would never have met had I not attended these events.

My next conference is the Health Optimization Summit in Austin, TX, which starts this Saturday! It is the debut of this UK-based conference in the US and will be my first attendance. The speaker line-up looks incredible: Gary Brecka, Ben Greenfield, Tim Gray, Chris Williamson, JJ Virgin, Mark Sisson, Calley Means, Dr. Vonda Wright, Max Lugavere, Dr. Stephanie Estima, Dr. Christopher Shade, Dr. Josh Axe, Dr. Steven Gundry, Shawn Wells, Caroline Alan, Dr. Aseem Malhotra, Dr. Barry Morguelan, Dr. John Lieurance, and many more! I almost forgot another VIP: Club Member Scott S. will be joining me.

After all this talk of conferences, you might be inspired to attend one. I have long searched for a directory of health conferences, but I could not find a one-stop-shop listing. Necessity is the mother of invention, so I finally created the list. I present to you the Be Wellthy Conference Connection. The purpose of this directory is to list all the best biohacking/health/wellness conferences in the United States. If you know of a conference that should be on the list, submit it using the button at the top of the directory. Together, we can make this the definitive list of biohacking conferences.

Find your tribe. Look for networking events and social gatherings, and get around the people you vibe with. Stay connected and be wellthy!

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The Daily Habit is where I share my habits related to the fundamentals: sleep, diet, physical activity, mindfulness, and stress management.

Understanding yourself is the first step in learning about and connecting with others. The four-colors personality test is a science-backed method to understand your core personality traits and discover those of others. Take this free short test and learn your color. Bonus points if you can guess my color!

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Refer Subscribers, Earn Perks!

With the referral program, you can earn perks like a complimentary Club Membership and other goodies by unlocking three tiers:

• Get a 1-month complimentary membership to the Be Wellthy Club for 3 referrals.

• Get a 3-month complimentary membership to the Be Wellthy Club and receive a book from my personal library for 6 referrals.

• Get a 6-month complimentary membership to the Be Wellthy Club and a goodie bag prize for 15 referrals.

By the way, if you’re already a Club Member, the free months will be added to the end of your subscription. You'll get credit for new subscribers (free or paid) when you use the “Share” button on any post.

While signed into your Substack account, you can visit the leaderboard that shows you how many referrals you have.

To learn more about the referral program, check out Substack’s FAQ.

Thank you for helping get the word out about Be Wellthy!

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Last week’s answer

Be Wellthy Club entrants: Veronica C., Luke S., Ariel E., Wendy S., Scott S., Renata B.

The March raffle is closed with 29 entries. I’ll announce the winners in next week’s newsletter.

Raffle prizes are for Be Wellthy Club Members only. Club members can email bewellthy@substack.com with the correct answer to each week’s brain training and be entered into a monthly raffle to win one of two prize packages every month. I do respond to every email.

This week:

Fill in the missing letters to make a nine-letter word starting from a corner square and spiraling into the center.

See the answer.

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Three years ago, I summarized the fundamentals of biohacking for anyone not familiar with the topic. Number 9 on the list, you guessed it, community and connection.

Keep your loved ones informed with the most up-to-date information about wellness by sharing this newsletter.

1. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1745691614568352

2. https://journals.plos.org/plosmedicine/article?id=10.1371/journal.pmed.1000316

3. https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2017/04/over-nearly-80-years-harvard-study-has-been-showing-how-to-live-a-healthy-and-happy-life/

4. https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanpub/article/PIIS2468-2667(20)30291-7/fulltext