With every passing day, it seems, there’s a new “research” study or new product on the market promising anti-aging benefits and longevity. How many of those new products and discoveries will actually be beneficial, however, is another matter. True scientific advances in the field of aging take time and extensive research, not marketing slogans or quick sales.

With that in mind, we are truly fortunate to be able to introduce you to Dr. Stephanie Venn-Watson, the veterinary epidemiologist and research scientist behind the remarkable discovery of C15:O, the first essential fatty acid to be discovered in nearly a century. This nutrient appears to be a crucial ingredient for slowing biological aging and combating chronic aging-associated diseases. In her new book, The Longevity Nutrient, Dr. Venn-Watson details the discovery of this new nutrient and describes the benefits of C15:O for a longer health span, and how you can introduce this nutrient into your daily diet. We are fortunate that Dr. Venn-Watson was willing to be interviewed by agebuzz to detail her scientific work and explain how it can help all of us achieve better health for longer. Below is a transcript of that interview with agebuzz Managing Editor Connie Zuckerman.

Connie Zuckerman (CZ): Dr. Venn-Watson, thank you so much for agreeing to be interviewed! Could you briefly describe your early years? Where did you grow up and attend college? What did you study? How did you decide to become a veterinarian and begin your career working with dolphins for the Navy?

Dr. Venn-Watson (DVW): While my earliest years were spent in suburban Arvada, Colorado, most of my growing up was in Simi Valley, California. I went to undergraduate school at the University of California, San Diego, where I majored in animal physiology & neuroscience, followed by Tufts University in Massachusetts for my veterinary doctoral degree, and Emory University in Atlanta for a master’s in public health. 

During my undergraduate years, I read Laurie Garrett’s book, The Coming Plague, and decided I wanted to become a “disease hunter” (aka, a medical epidemiologist). During this time, I was introduced to a veterinary epidemiologist who wonderfully shared, “If you really want to understand diseases, learn about them across many animal species.” Years later, as a veterinary epidemiologist, I was recruited by the U.S. Navy to help understand health and disease trends among their population of aging Navy dolphins.

CZ: What led you to the discovery of the C15:O fatty acid in dolphins?

DVW: While wild dolphins typically live about 20 years, Navy dolphins routinely live into their 40s and 50s. In fact, there are two dolphins that will be turning 60 years old this year! We found that about 1 in 3 older Navy dolphins developed aging-associated conditions, including insulin resistance, hypercholesterolemia, fatty liver disease, chronic inflammation, and even changes in the brain consistent with Alzheimer’s disease. 

We used an advanced technology, called metabolomics, which allowed us to measure and compare hundreds of small molecules present in the dolphins’ archived blood samples (as well as in their all-fish diets) to find which molecules predicted the healthiest aging dolphins. In these studies, C15:0, an odd-chain saturated fatty acid, was the top nutrient that predicted the healthiest aging dolphins.

CZ: What is a fatty acid, and how does it benefit dolphins? 

DVW: Fatty acids are molecules that provide many health benefits, including supporting our cell membranes, helping with cellular signaling to balance our metabolism, immunity, and more, and serving as fuel for our mitochondria – those powerhouses of our cells.

While our bodies can make a lot of different fatty acids, there are a few that we must get from our diet in order to stay healthy. These are called essential fatty acids. One is an omega-3, another is an omega-6, and as the dolphins taught us, the third known essential fatty acid is C15:0.

C15:0, also called pentadecanoic acid, works at the cellular level to strengthen cell membranes against age-driving lipid peroxidation. In addition, over 100 peer-reviewed studies have shown that C15:0 has 36+ cellular benefits that help to keep our bodies balanced and healthy, especially with age. As a result, C15:0 protects long-term metabolic, cognitive, liver, red blood cell, and immune health. Not just for dolphins, but for humans, too.

While dolphins get C15:0 from the skin and heads of certain types of fish, our primary source of C15:0 is dairy fat. Yes, this specific saturated fatty acid in butter is actually good for us.

CZ: Many have heard of omega-3 fatty acids. How does C15:0 differ from that?

DVW: Omega-3s, such as EPA and DHA, are polyunsaturated fatty acids that have anti-inflammatory properties and help to make cell membranes more flexible. Omega-3s have multiple double bonds in their chemical structure, which serve as hinges that help with cell membrane flexibility, but are also weak points that make omega-3s susceptible to lipid peroxidation.

While C15:0 also has numerous antiinflammatory activities, it has no double bonds. This is why C15:0 helps to make our cell membranes more resilient and resistant to lipid peroxidation. As such, omega-3s and C15:0 play a yin and yang role in keeping our cells flexible and resilient.

CZ: What led you to the determination that this would be valuable in humans as well? How does this nutrient support healthy aging and longevity in humans?

DVW: At the same time we were finding that healthier aging dolphins had higher C15:0 levels, the same associations were being found in humans. Numerous studies have repeatedly shown that people with higher C15:0 have better long-term metabolic, heart, liver, red blood cell, and cognitive health. 

With the support of Office of Naval Research funding, we moved a pure C15:0 ingredient into the lab to demonstrate how C15:0 can actively support healthy aging in mammals, especially humans. Thanks to the 100+ studies on C15:0 published by prestigious research teams throughout the world, C15:0 has emerged as a leading geroprotector. A geroprotector is a molecule that effectively slows aging at the cellular level to stave off the diseases that typically lead to our demise. In Simon & Schuster’s recently published book, The Longevity Nutrient, we walk through how C15:0 meets all seven criteria of a geroprotector and longevity nutrient.

Four human clinical trials have demonstrated the ability for pure C15:0 supplementation to raise C15:0 levels to adequate levels, and by doing so, result in healthier liver function, and healthier red blood cell function, lower LDL cholesterol, and improved gut microbiome health. 

CZ:  The Longevity Nutrient is your brand-new book. Congratulations on this publication! What led you to the decision to write it? Can you tell us about the book and how you think older adults can benefit from reading this book? What is the most important message you want readers to take away from reading your book?

DVW: Thank you! I have a weekly fatty15 blog called Science Says! that covers the latest science on healthy aging and C15:0. The kind folks at Simon & Schuster had been reading this blog and reached out with the desire to consolidate 20 years of adventures, discoveries, and science into one book. That resulted in The Longevity Nutrient.

In addition to sharing the initial dolphin-based discoveries, robust science behind how C15:0 is essential to supporting healthy aging, and how nutritional C15:0 deficiencies may be accelerating aging among younger people, the book provides useful tips on how to optimize our C15:0 levels, in addition to supplementation, such as choosing butter from grass-fed animals. It is hoped that The Longevity Nutrient will inspire global conversations to revisit current nutritional guidelines on dietary fats, including the long-term benefits of C15:0 to infants and children.

CZ: Can you also talk about the founding of your company and the Fatty 15 supplement you produce? What is the value for older adults in taking this supplement? Is there scientific evidence to support its use? How does this supplement support a healthy aging diet? 

DVW: While our primary dietary source of C15:0 is from whole dairy fat, only about 1% of fatty acids in dairy fat is C15:0. Unfortunately, over 40% of fatty acids in dairy fat are proinflammatory. This is why studies looking at the health benefits of dairy fat have been mixed. To help solve this problem, the Navy funded us to develop a pure, highly bioavailable, and vegan-friendly C15:0 ingredient that can be used as a supplement. The result? Science-backed fatty15 acids to support a healthy aging diet.

A decade of peer-reviewed scientific studies, which have been further reviewed by an independent third party, show that fatty15 effectively slows and reverses aging at the cellular level, resulting in supported metabolic, cognitive, liver, red blood cell, and immune health – especially among older adults. Based on a survey of over 5,000 fatty15 customers, over 70% report seeing or feeling benefits within 16 weeks, including improved blood labs, deeper sleep, calmer mood, and improved joint comfort.

CZ: From a practical perspective, how easy is it to use your Fatty 15 supplement? Is it taken daily? Is it expensive? Is it easy to find in a store?

DVW: Fatty15 is easy and safe to use, including easy-to-swallow small pills with no smell or taste. Paired with tangible benefits often felt within months, this explains why 99% of customers report that fatty15 has become a part of their daily health routine. Fatty15 costs as little as $1.33 a day, which ensures that customers are getting the absolute highest quality, extensively tested, and greater than 99% pure C15:0 ingredient backed by numerous studies using the exact same molecule. Fatty15 is available online at fatty15.com, on Amazon, and through select healthcare practitioners 

CZ: What other steps do you advise consumers to take, along with your supplement, to help support healthy aging?

DVW: Along with taking fatty15, exercising (including resistance/strength training) for at least 20 minutes a day for 4 days a week, getting around 7 to 8 hours of sleep, staying social, and eating a Mediterranean diet have all been tried and true ways to support healthy aging. Additionally, studies are increasingly showing that protecting our hearing, including using hearing aids, helps to keep our brains stimulated and our cognitive health, well, healthy.

CZ: How would agebuzz readers find out more about your research and the Fatty 15 supplement? 

DVW: Readers can find out more about the book by going to the book’s website: The Longevity Nutrient.  For more information on the peer-reviewed research leading to the discovery of C15:O, click here. Finally, to find out more about our supplement, Fatty 15, please visit our website at fatty15.com. agebuzz readers are eligible for a 15% discount on your first order of fatty15 by using the referral code AGEBUZZ at our website, fatty15.com.

CZ: Are you still conducting research? If so, what are your latest topics of inquiry?

DVW: Indeed! We are currently studying how C15:0 can protect our cognitive health, especially as we age. Our most recent Navy-funded study, published in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences, found that C15:0 has key activities that protect healthy levels of dopamine and endocannabinoids, both of which support our cognitive, sleep, and mental health. We also continue to pursue the hypothesis that nutritional C15:0 deficiency, which causes Cellular Fragility Syndrome and a newly discovered form of cell death (called ferroptosis), may help explain why type 2 diabetes, coronary heart disease, certain types of cancers, and early onset dementias are increasing among younger adults – populations that were born into a relatively C15:0 deficient world.

CZ: Do you have any final thoughts to share about longevity, healthy human aging, and the use of nutritional supplements, including Fatty15?

DVW: While there has been a lot of hype surrounding the term “longevity”, the scientific world has entered a truly exciting time to meaningfully improve our cellular health with aging, resulting in longer and healthier lives. 

Thanks to that initial discovery while helping Navy dolphins, followed by the 100+ studies thereafter, we are increasingly understanding that C15:0 is so essential to healthy aging that, without it, we age faster. 

Our team’s goal is to help democratize longevity, understanding that everyone has the right to a long and healthy life. To help accomplish this goal, we are working toward fortifying foods, including infant formulas, with C15:0 to greatly increase the world’s accessibility to this essential healthy aging nutrient.

CZ: Thank you so much, Dr. Venn-Watson, for sharing your insights and expertise with agebuzz readers! 

DVW: Thank you! This has been a pleasure.