EP10 | Epigenetics and PTSI | Robert (Bobby) Brooke, CEO of the Nonprofit Clock Foundation

Can PTSD accelerate aging — and can reversing it make you biologically younger? Dr. Lipov talks with epigenetics expert Bobby Brooke about stress, longevity, and the power of measurable healing.- - In this engaging episode of Brain, Hope, Reality, Dr. Eugene Lipov speaks with Robert (Bobby) Brooke, CEO of the nonprofit Clock Foundation and collaborator with epigeneticist Dr. Steve Horvath. The conversation explores the field of epigenetics, particularly how trauma and stress can accelerate biological aging through changes in gene expression — changes that are measurable and, crucially, reversible. They discuss the development of epigenetic clocks like Horvath’s GrimAge, which can predict biological age from a simple blood or saliva test, and how these tools are now being used to study the long-term health impacts of PTSD, depression, and other stress-related conditions.Dr. Lipov reveals the biological age result from his own GrimAge test — more than 12 years younger than his chronological age — and reflects on the lifestyle and medical interventions (including rapamycin, metformin, intermittent fasting, and stress reduction) that may have contributed. The pair discuss the broader implications of these findings for aging populations, clinical trials, and public health — particularly in validating the tangible health costs of PTSD and mental stress. They share a shared optimism that new biomarkers and trials could finally shift the conversation around mental health from stigma to science, and from symptom management to true biological healing.