Practical Applications in Lifespan and Healthspan: Leveraging the Science of Novel Experiences, and Applications in Behavioral Economics

Healthspan is presently losing ground to lifespan, in countries across the world. This trend results in an elevated rate (more people disabled) and length of disability (more life years per person). People are living longer, while consuming more healthcare and more caregiving - in all forms. While we have more knowledge and better options to choose more healthily now than we have ever had in the pillars of nutrition, supplements, sleep aids, and exercise – we are not adopting these healthy choices. Choice burden, friction, the arrival fallacy, the horns effect, negativity bias, and more – are some of the most cited barriers between knowledge and adoption. In this second part of a two-article series, we detail these barriers that inhibit us from achieving an optimized health span and lifespan. Most constructively and importantly, this article provides practical strategies to improve adoption at the level of the person, for the wellness provider and perhaps most importantly, for the healthcare professional.