Halfway Through 2026: What Actually Moves the Needle on Health
Welcome,
We're past the halfway point of 2026, which feels like a reasonable moment to pause and take stock. I've been doing exactly that this week, and what I keep coming back to is how much I want this year to be about mastering the basics — properly, not just in theory.
For me that means enough fibre each day to support hormone clearance, movement that's consistent without tipping my nervous system into overdrive, the same bedtime most nights, daily meditation (even ten quiet minutes counts), and taking simple supplements like magnesium and vitamin D. Connection with people I care about, too. None of it is glamorous. All of it, I suspect, matters more than anything we could add on top.
My thinking is that if these foundations are genuinely solid by December, 2027 might be the right time to explore things like NAD or peptides. But not yet.
This week's issue is all about getting those fundamentals right — and why that's harder, and more worthwhile, than it sounds.
Emily x
🗺️ Where you live could shape your dementia risk — massive new study
A USC-led study analysing more than 214,000 adults across 14 countries found that the risk factors most linked to dementia — like low education, high blood pressure and obesity — vary dramatically by country. Low education affects 86% of older adults in China but just 12% in the US, while high BMI affects 45% of Americans but only 13% of Indians. Published in The Lancet Healthy Longevity and presented at the Alzheimer's Association International Conference 2026, the findings suggest a single global dementia prevention checklist doesn't work — different populations need different priorities.
💊 Popular weight-loss drugs Ozempic and Wegovy may slow biological aging
Researchers found that semaglutide, the active ingredient in Ozempic and Wegovy, slowed biological ageing markers in adults with HIV — marking the first clinical evidence that the drug may influence the ageing process itself, not just weight or blood sugar. The study involved 108 adults with HIV-associated lipohypertrophy who received either weekly semaglutide or placebo injections for 32 weeks. The researchers are clear this was a secondary analysis of an existing trial rather than one designed specifically to study ageing, and that larger, purpose-built studies are needed before drawing firm conclusions.
🏋️ Could creatine help fight cancer? New mice study
Research from UCLA, found that creatine may strengthen the immune system's cancer-fighting ability — not through muscle, but by energising dendritic cells, which detect tumours and activate the killer T cells that destroy them. In mice, daily creatine injections significantly slowed tumour growth and boosted the activity of these dendritic cells, largely by increasing their internal energy reserves. The researchers believe this could eventually help make immunotherapy — which currently only benefits 20-40% of patients — more effective for more people. This is early-stage science in mice and lab-grown cells, not cancer patients, and anyone in treatment should speak to their doctor before adding any supplement.
📱 Fitness trackers are picking up pregnancy and miscarriage signals — sometimes before women know themselves
A growing number of women are reporting that their Oura ring or Whoop strap flagged pregnancy — and in some cases miscarriage — before any symptoms or a positive test appeared, through subtle shifts in resting heart rate, heart rate variability, skin temperature and sleep quality. Research backs this up: studies have found wearables can detect pregnancy through temperature changes up to nine days before a positive test, and separate research suggests heart rate variability patterns during pregnancy may even help predict preterm birth. No single metric means much alone, but tracked together over consecutive nights, researchers say the pattern is becoming increasingly reliable.
🎭 Going to the theatre, museums or concerts may protect your brain as you age
A study tracked 1,899 adults over 50 for a decade and found that those who regularly attended the cinema, museums, theatre or concerts had an average physiological age of 66.9 years — about three years younger than those with lower cultural engagement, at 69.9 years, despite being the same actual age. Researchers point to stronger social ties, better mental health, healthier lifestyle habits and the cognitive stimulation of engaging with art and music as possible explanations — and note the effect size is comparable to what's typically seen with frequent physical activity.
Today's issue is supported by Totally Derma
Today's newsletter is supported by Totally Derma, the evidence-based collagen drink supplement recommended by dermatologists and cosmetic clinics across the UK. Last year I had founder Anita Eyles on the podcast to talk about the whole-body benefits of collagen — from skin and joints to gut health and menopausal symptoms — and it's a conversation that's genuinely shaped how I think about supplementation. The formulation is built around Arthred, a hydrolysed collagen that goes through a six-hour enzymatic process most brands skip, resulting in smaller, more uniform peptides with a 95% absorption rate — meaning your body actually uses what you're taking in. The Health Review readers get 15% off their first subscription with code HEALTHREVIEW15 at checkout.
Halfway Through 2026: What Actually Moves the Needle on Health
We're now over halfway through the year, which feels like a fair moment to ask an honest question: of everything you set out to do for your health in January, what's actually stuck? If the answer is "not much" — don’t panic. I don't think it's a lack of information or ambition. If anything, we're drowning in tools, protocols and data. I think the real problem is that most of us feel overwhelmed and often reach for the shiny, advanced stuff — the peptide, the supplement stack, the £400 blood panel — before the boring foundations are anywhere near solid.
It's a pattern I hear on repeat on this podcast. Dr Alka Patel and Dr Ash Kapoor — both longevity doctors I've had on to talk biological age testing — were blunt about it. Peptides, NAD+, the more advanced end of longevity medicine? Not where you start. They're refinements for a body that's already sleeping properly, digesting properly and not living in fight-or-flight all day. Skip the foundations and you're basically renovating the kitchen of a house with no walls.
So here's where I'd actually put my energy for the rest of this year, in order.
Sleep. The genuinely unglamorous stuff. My own non-negotiables: same bedtime most nights, room properly blacked out, air con on so it stays cool, magnesium glycinate before bed, and yes, I mouth tape. I know how that sounds. I also wake up feeling completely different to how I used to. We've covered research this year showing that losing just 80 minutes of sleep a night is linked to measurable weight gain, and that deep sleep specifically triggers the growth hormone release responsible for muscle repair and fat metabolism. You cannot supplement your way out of chaotic sleep. We’ve all tried!
Nutrition, in the least trendy sense I can manage. Enough protein, plants, genuinely varied, not just the same three vegetables on rotation, less ultra-processed food, and fibre — enough of it. You want to be going to the bathroom at least once a day, because that's how your body actually clears out used hormones, chemicals and microplastics rather than reabsorbing them. Keeping inflammation low through what you eat matters just as much — it's behind almost every chronic condition we cover on this show. And blood sugar spikes deserve far more attention than they get: the rollercoaster of a sugar high and crash isn't just a mood and energy problem, it's also aging you at a cellular level.
Movement — and here's the actually good news: less than you think. A study we covered this year tracking over 147,000 people for 30 years found that just 90 to 120 minutes of strength training a week was linked to some of the biggest reductions in death from any cause, with barely any extra benefit beyond that. This isn't about punishing yourself in the gym five days a week. It's about something you can still be doing in your 70s.
Stress, or more precisely, your nervous system. This is the one I think gets talked about the most and practised the least. Genuinely simple things move it: getting outside for a walk without your phone, letting yourself slow down instead of filling every gap, a few minutes of meditation. The vagus nerve conversation has properly gone mainstream this year too — even wearable VNS devices, which stimulate the vagus nerve to shift you out of fight-or-flight, are becoming a normal part of people's routines rather than a fringe idea. Whatever the method, the principle is the same: a body stuck in low-level threat mode won't fully benefit from good sleep, good food or good movement, because it's too busy trying to survive to bother repairing.
Is this a thrilling six-month plan? No. But that might be exactly the point. The basics are basic because they work. I'd genuinely rather you end 2026 having nailed four boring fundamentals than having cycled through five expensive protocols and abandoned all of them by September.
Emily x
This feature is for educational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Always consult your own doctor or dentist before making changes to your health.
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