The Simple Shift in Beliefs That Adds 7 Years to Your Life | Dr. Kerry Burnight
Good Life Project
Jonathan Fields / Acast
4.6 • 3.2K Ratings
🗓️ 13 October 2025
⏱️ 66 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Forget everything you think you know about aging.
In this eye-opening conversation, gerontologist Dr. Kerry Burnight reveals why your genes only determine 25% of how you'll age, and how your mindset about getting older can add or subtract 7 years from your life. Drawing from her NYT bestseller, Joyspan: The Art and Science of Thriving in Life's Second Half, Dr. Burnight shares four science-backed strategies to create not just a longer life, but one filled with meaning, connection, and genuine joy at any age.
You can find Kerry at: Website | Instagram | Episode Transcript
If you LOVED this episode, you’ll also love the conversations we had with Karen Walrond about embracing aging with possibility and power.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | I'm going to ask you five questions. These are yes or no questions and you're going to be |
| 0:05.5 | desperate to say more than yes or no. But I promise you we will unpack all of them as the |
| 0:11.4 | conversation unfolds. Number one, do your genes determine your lifespan? No. Number two, |
| 0:17.5 | can how you feel about aging add or subtract years to your life? |
| 0:22.3 | Yes. |
| 0:23.2 | Is how long we live the ultimate measure of aging? |
| 0:27.4 | No. |
| 0:28.6 | Can loneliness be as harmful to your health as toxins? |
| 0:34.1 | Yes. |
| 0:35.3 | Final question, can being generous help you live better and longer? Yes. Yes. Final question. Can being generous help you live better and longer? |
| 0:40.0 | Yes. |
| 0:43.1 | So what if I told you that your beliefs about aging could add or subtract over seven years from your life? |
| 0:50.3 | And that how you feel about getting older matters more than your genes when it comes to living a long vibrant life. |
| 0:56.1 | These are just some of the fascinating discoveries we explore in today's conversation. |
| 1:00.0 | We'll look at why loneliness can be as harmful as smoking and how giving to others might be the secret ingredient to thriving as we age. |
| 1:06.4 | My guest today is Dr. Kerry Burnight, a renowned gerontologist who taught geriatric medicine for |
| 1:11.4 | 18 years at the University of California Irvine School of Medicine. In her New York Times bestselling |
| 1:16.6 | book, Joy Span, The Art and Science of Thriving and Life's second half, she presents this revolutionary |
| 1:22.3 | approach that transforms how we think about the experience of aging. And what makes this |
| 1:26.3 | conversation really powerful is how it replaces fear with possibility and also a whole lot of practical science-backed |
| 1:32.5 | advice. Dr. Burnwright really shows us that our later years can be rich with purpose and connection |
| 1:37.7 | and yes, genuine joy. Whether you're 35 or 85, the conversation offers just a whole new way to think about what lies ahead, either for yourself or for those you'll be in support of. |
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