Dr. Erik Senger is a dermatologist and author of the book "Rejuvenation Code". For many years, he has been dealing with the biological mechanisms of aging. In his book, he describes a self-experiment that shows: aging is not a purely passive process, but can actually be influenced.
Introduction and personal background
MOLEQLAR: You have been working as a doctor for many years and are intensively engaged in your work as well as in your book with aging and Longevity. Can you start by telling us a bit about yourself and your medical career – and contextualize how your interest in health and healthy aging has developed?
Dr. Senger: My medical training began at the University Hospital Frankfurt.Originally, I wanted to become an internist, which is why I initially worked in nephrology, the subspecialty of internal medicine that deals with kidney diseases.
There, one often experiences medicine in all its complexity: Many diseases are interconnected, metabolic problems, cardiovascular diseases, chronic inflammation, and not infrequently, this path ultimately leads to dialysis or even a kidney transplant. This time made me realize very early on how closely aging processes, chronic diseases, and lifestyle factors are linked sind.Die my further professional career then led me to dermatology. On the one hand, because I realized that this field simply suits me particularly well, and on the other hand, because I found it incredibly exciting from the very beginning.Dermatology has something special: Many biological processes can be seen directly with the eye – they unfold before us and are therefore immediately perceivable and treatable.
MOLEQLAR: As a dermatologist, you are particularly confronted with visible aging processes. How has this perspective shaped your approach to the topic of aging?
Dr. Senger: Dermatology is the field par excellence when it comes to visible aging processes. The skin is not only a mirror of the soul but also a mirror of aging. It allows for early recognition of what time, environment, and lifestyle do to it.
In the last 30 years, I have been able to closely follow and apply the development of aesthetic dermatology in daily practice. Much began with rather classical rejuvenation methods such as fruit acid peels.Later, fillers and botulinum toxin were added, which gave aesthetic dermatology a whole new dynamic.
At the same time, there were already laser procedures and also aesthetic surgical options that have technically and methodologically advanced enormously during this time.
In daily practice, one can clearly see two sides of aging: the aesthetic changes of the skin and the medical consequences, such as the increasing frequency of chronic sun damage and skin cancer even in middle age.
MOLEQLAR: At almost 70 years old, you decided to measure your own biological age and make targeted changes. What was the specific trigger for this decision?
The trigger was actually a mix of personal experience and scientific curiosity.On the one hand, I read the book by David Sinclair "The End of Aging." In it, he vividly describes the difference between chronological age, that is, the years of life in the calendar, and biological age, which much better reflects the actual condition of our organism and how high our real life expectancy could be.
At the same time, my father also played an important role. He was always very fit and athletic and eventually lived to be 100 years old. However, when I visited him, he often said to me: "Erik, getting old is not nice."
In older age, some typical age-related diseases did arise, which increasingly affected him. This experience has occupied my thoughts a lot. I have wondered whether it should not be possible to not only live long but also to remain healthy and capable for as long as possible.
When I began to engage more intensively with the strategies that Sinclair writes about, it seemed only logical to first have my biological age measured to see where I actually stand. That was, in a way, the starting point for my own self-experiment.
Dermatology & Aging
MOLEQLAR: As a dermatologist, you work daily with the visible signs of aging – wrinkles, loss of elasticity, pigmentation changes. How do you differentiate from your professional perspective between aesthetic aging and biological aging? And where do these two levels intersect?
Dr. Senger: The difference between aesthetic and biological aging lies primarily in the perspective. Patients first look in the mirror and assess their appearance: Are there more wrinkles? Has the skin lost its elasticity? Have age spots appeared? This is essentially aesthetic aging – that is, what one sees and subjectively perceives as "looking older."
As a dermatologist, I additionally see the biological level. Changes due to UV radiation, environmental influences, or the natural aging process become visible on the skin.
And there is a third perspective: We must always distinguish whether a skin change is merely a sign of skin aging or whether it may already conceal a precursor to skin cancer.
Skin and hair are considered particularly visible indicators of age.To what extent do underlying biological processes reflect in them? And what does the external appearance actually reveal – or not – about a person's biological age?
With hair, aging processes are often noticeable relatively quickly: they become thinner, less dense, or gray. These are normal aging processes of the hair-forming cells. In cases of genetically predisposed hair loss, this can, as is well known, lead to baldness.
For the skin, the environment also plays a significant role. Facial skin can appear significantly older due to UV-related damage, pigmentation spots, wrinkle formation, and loss of elasticity compared to covered body areas.
Additionally, lifestyle factors come into play: smoking, alcohol, or an unfavorable diet can cause the skin and all other body cells to age more quickly.
In simple terms, one can say that the external appearance correlates quite well with biological age. According to the saying: You are as old as you look.
From the Observable to the Measurable
MOLEQLAR: You describe the year 2022 as a moment when you realized: "Now I am getting old." Health has always been present for you as a doctor – what made this point a turning point to engage more concretely with aging processes?
The thought of engaging more intensively with aging processes arose several years earlier. I noticed that my hands were getting more wrinkles, and to be honest, I was a bit shocked when I saw recent photos of myself.
At the same time, I noticed that my energy was somewhat declining and I was getting tired more quickly in the afternoons.
MOLEQLAR: Your first step was measuring your biological age. What did the test result trigger in you – and how did you proceed from there?
My first thought was actually quite pragmatic: If I don't change anything, the aging process will simply continue as it has been. However, if I deliberately try something that is reported in the scientific literature, it could theoretically be possible to influence biological aging processes.
That is exactly where the idea for my self-experiment originated.
Before I started, I took a very close look at how the safety of these substances is evaluated in the medical literature.
The result of the first measurement of my biological age positively surprised me: I was about twelve years younger than my chronological age.That was a strong signal for me that my lifestyle – particularly regular exercise and my predominantly vegetarian diet – must have already had a significant impact.
MOLEQLAR: The data speaks for itself: Within about 2.5 years, you were able to reduce your biological age by almost ten years. How do you personally and professionally interpret these numbers?
For me personally, the result of my self-experiment was astonishing and at the same time incredibly motivating.
Although it is a documented self-experiment, the preclinical data on many of the used supplements already show that aging processes can be biologically modulated.
Of course, this is not yet a universally valid proof – larger clinical studies are needed for that.But for me, it is a very strong indication that genuine rejuvenation could at least in principle be possible.
What impressed me particularly was that alongside the decreased biological age, visible signs of aging in my skin – especially wrinkle formation and loss of elasticity – have significantly regressed.
Even in everyday life, I notice the difference: I feel fresher and am more capable both in sports and in my professional daily routine.
Bio-Age Balance, Lifestyle Compass, and Take Off Index
MOLEQLAR: In your book, you work with three central tools that provide readers with a concrete structure for their longevity journey: the Bio Age Balance, the Lifestyle Compass, and the Take Off Index.
MOLEQLAR: The Bio Age Balance is intended to help recognize which factors and habits accelerate or slow down the aging process, in order to derive conscious decisions for the future. At the same time, it is consciously based on a subjective, retrospective assessment. How have you developed the individual annual values for yourself? – and how can readers with less medical background knowledge arrive at coherent assessments for themselves?
Dr. Senger: I find it very sensible to take one's biological age as an opportunity to systematically question one's own lifestyle: Which habits have likely made me age faster, and which may have contributed to a slowdown or even rejuvenation?
Some factors can indeed be compared with scientific data.Studies show, for example, that certain forms of exercise are associated with a significantly higher life expectancy. There is also evidence that a long-term vegetarian diet can lead to additional years of life. In my case, a total of about 14 gained years of life seemed plausible.
Other aspects such as stress, sleep quality, or personal life crises are difficult to measure objectively and inevitably remain subjective assessments. Nevertheless, I consider this reflection to be very valuable.
MOLEQLAR: Following the Bio Age balance, two more tools, the Lifestyle Compass and the Take Off Index, serve as starting points and navigation aids. What role do these tools play in the overall concept – and why is clear orientation at the beginning so important?
Dr.Senger: The Lifestyle Compass and the Take-Off Index are, in a way, the practical translation of the Bio-Age Balance into everyday life. While the Bio-Age Balance shows retrospectively which factors have likely influenced my biological age, these two tools help to look forward: The Lifestyle Compass makes visible which levers, such as movement, nutrition, sleep, stress, or recovery, one can specifically address, and the Take-Off Index essentially describes the starting point on this journey.
This orientation at the beginning is important because many people feel that they want to do something for their health, but often do not know where to start.
The tools create a simple structure here: One recognizes their own starting point, sees possible areas for action and can implement changes step by step with this guide.This allows one to gain control through their own biological monitoring.
The Rejuvenation Code
MOLEQLAR: Based on scientific findings and your own experiences, you have developed the concept of the Rejuvenation Code. If you had to summarize the essence of this approach in a few sentences: What does the "Rejuvenation Code" describe?
Dr. Senger: The Rejuvenation Code essentially describes an interplay of various factors that collectively influence the biological mechanisms of aging. These include a health-promoting lifestyle with exercise, nutrition, sleep, stress regulation, and regenerative stimuli such as fasting or cold – complemented by selected bioactive substances that are associated in research with longevity pathways such as AMPK, sirtuins or autophagy .
My concept is fundamentally based on two pillars. On the one hand, I was able to demonstrate through my lifestyle that my biological aging process could be significantly positively influenced – I was therefore about 12 years younger than my chronological age. However, without further measures, I would have aged biologically more slowly, but still continued to age.
Only through the targeted use of bioactive supplements did a second dynamic come into play: Within about 2 ½ years, my biological age decreased by another approximately 10 years, while my lifestyle remained unchanged. This indicates that a rejuvenation effect has indeed taken place. The Rejuvenation Code therefore represents the synergy of lifestyle and my specifically selected bioactive substances for this purpose.
MOLEQLAR: What distinguishes your approach from classic anti-aging concepts or short-term optimization strategies?
Dr. Senger: The crucial difference from many classic anti-aging concepts, in my opinion, is that my approach is not only based on individual measures or short-term optimization strategies but is founded on a scientifically developed overall strategy. I have analyzed the available studies on the bioactive substances used very closely and combined these insights with my own experiences in a comprehensible self-experiment.
What is also special is the documentation: My biological age was measured with a genetic age test, and at the same time, changes in the skin – such as in structure and wrinkle formation – can be documented photographically over several years.This creates a kind of bridge between theory and practice.
What is new, especially, is the perspective: It is not only about slowing down aging processes, as many anti-aging concepts attempt, but rather about specifically initiating processes that could actually lead to rejuvenation and making these changes measurable and visible on the skin.
MOLEQLAR: Have there been any insights or observations on your own longevity journey that surprised you or made you question existing assumptions about aging?
What surprised me most was one thing: that it actually worked. Of course, there are a variety of approaches, hypotheses, and trends in the longevity scene that are scientifically validated to varying degrees. This can quickly become confusing or even overwhelming.For me personally, however, this was less decisive because I focused on my own systematically documented path and was able to observe how this process successfully developed step by step.
Healthy Aging Coming Soon
MOLEQLAR: If we should take away one central insight from your book: what would it be?
Dr. Senger: Rejuvenation is not a luxury. It is active prevention and can help prevent age-related diseases. Thus, it becomes a key to a future with more healthy years of life, vitality, and joy of living.
Rejuvenation changes many things: the feeling of life, energy, the reflection in the mirror – and above all, the outlook for the future.
MOLEQLAR: And in conclusion: What would you advise readers who are just beginning to engage systematically with their biological age and longevity?
Dr. Senger: My advice would be to approach this topic openly, curiously, and without prejudice. My book can be a good starting point, as it systematically processes the scientific literature on the topic of longevity and simultaneously describes my own path to rejuvenation step by step.
Furthermore, there are many reputable scientific sources and platforms today that deal with healthy aging.However, it is always crucial to take a close look: How was the data collected? How reliable are the studies – and how transparently are the results presented?
Only on this basis can one form a well-founded personal opinion and make sensible, long-term decisions for one's own health.
