First off, I realize that I am overwhelmingly outnumbered as there are twenty-something five-star reviews. The book has only been out since December of 2010, and so there hasn't been time for the book to be critically reviewed by the medical or scientific community. I am not attacking any reviewer personally, I am simply suggesting caution.
After reading the book myself, I felt compelled to write a less-than-positive review, not because I know for certain that the information is incorrect, but simply based on the extreme lack of verifiable information in the book. Since I happen to live near the University of California in San Francisco, I have contacted Dr. Elizabeth Blackburn's lab to find out her and her associates' own views on the suggestions in this book, as I've found none in my research. Until then, I am giving the book 3 stars. If she or her lab gets back to me with positive accounts, then I will change my initial review.
First of all, let me say that Greta Blackburn is not Dr. Elizabeth Blackburn. I doubt that the authors are trying to confuse readers, but I can easily see how the cursory reader would confuse the two. Dr. Blackburn, Dr. Greider, and Dr. Stozstak in fact did win the Nobel Prize in 2009 for their research on telomerase and telomeres, however they are not associated with the authors of this book in any way that I have been able to find. I, of course, could be wrong. As far as I know, the only suggestion Dr. Blackburn has ever made concerning healthy telomere length is the reduction of chronic stress.
A red flag that I found was the abnormally high doses of supplements suggested by these authors in their "practical" program. The amounts are far above the normal recommendations. Yet, that isn't the main cause of concern for me. It doesn't take long to realize that the authors continuously claim that you can't trust any supplement company save the ones for sale on Dave Woynarowski's own website. In fact, I've been unable to locate the suggested super multivitamins with such high levels of components anywhere else. Please, speak to your physician or a registered dietitian before beginning any program that suggests you take 6,000 mg of fish oil, super mega vitamins, etc.
Thirdly, the subject of TA-65 is a tricky one. Do some research. There's truly not much out there on the subject. Read articles from trusted sources and you'll quickly realize that many in the scientific and medical community say that the effect of TA-65 on telomere length is indeed positive, but it is not great and the far-reaching effects of the supplement are unknown. I'd suggest, as a logician, that you wait for more information to be published before spending thousands of dollars per year on a supplement that is so little researched.
For now, that is my review. Again, I'll be happy to change my review once true experts have been able to critically review the information and I hear back from the Blackburn lab. As for now, I simply suggest you proceed with caution.
