I Am Obsessed With Longevity & I Think This Is Worth Every Penny

I am obsessed with longevity, so naturally, I've heard about elective MRIs countless times—but there was a huge reason I hesitated: I'm claustrophobic. Sitting in an isolated tube for an hour just didn't seem worth it to me.

However, I'm equally passionate about science-backed technology and preventive health, and I'm no stranger to using myself as a guinea pig in this arena.

After some deliberation, I decided to give the Prenuvo Full Body Comprehensive scan a go, and wow—the experience was so much easier than expected, even for someone who's claustrophobic.

I watched Netflix for an hour while in the full-body MRI and could've kept going for another 30 minutes if I had to. I never thought those words would have ever come out of my mouth, as 30 seconds in a cramped space would typically send my heart racing.

The surprising findings from this experience have been nothing short of game-changing, so I'm here to recap my results as discussed with Prenuvo founder Andrew Lacy on the latest episode of the mindbodygreen podcast.

On my Prenuvo MRI, we discovered a small nasal polyp in the sinus area, so my practitioner suggested I see an ENT to get it checked out. At that follow-up appointment, my physician told me I had a deviated septum—which was news to me—and that because of it, I was probably a really bad nasal breather.

I challenged this notion since I'm always making an effort to prioritize nasal breathing (I'm well aware of its many health benefits). My doctor then showed me in the mirror that when I breathe through my nose, one of my nostrils completely collapses.

So, while I thought I knew what it felt like to breathe well through my nose, I was wrong.

Following his suggestion, I picked up some affordable nasal strips from the drugstore. The second I put them on and took a breath, I was taken aback—this is what it feels like to breathe through your nose without any restriction, I thought.

As a health and wellness fanatic, I naturally had to test this optimized nasal breathing against my sleep score from my Oura Ring. I usually get enough REM sleep but struggle to get enough deep sleep.

Due to a previous basketball injury, I've been familiar with chiropractors for quite some time—so you'd think if there was anything wrong with my spine, I would have known by now. Not the case.

The Prenuvo MRI scan showed slight scoliosis around my L3 vertebra. I use the word "slight" because you wouldn't have seen this or noticed it without the zoomed-in MRI scan.

Here's where the element of prevention really comes in. Of course, this slight scoliosis is fine right now—I mean, I didn't even notice it until the scan—however, without proper care and attention, this could easily slip into something more serious.

After visiting my chiropractor and discussing the MRI results, I realized that this scoliosis was likely caused by my habitual sleeping position—always on one side—to alleviate pressure from that old basketball injury to my shoulder.

Now that I know about this, I can work on my sleep position and, more importantly, keep an eye on it. If I start to feel pain in my back, I know to look into it and understand what might be causing it.

While my findings were pretty minor, my wife and fellow co-founder and co-CEO of mindbodygreen, Colleen, had a different experience—but she also agrees on the worthiness of these scans.

Her MRI revealed a dilated aorta in her heart. Specifically, this dilation had reached 4 centimeters, which is considered borderline.

However, if these 4 centimeters become five, there's another level of concern because the dilation could lead to more serious heart-health complications.

This finding prompted Colleen to have a conversation with her dad, who has the same heart condition.

Both my wife and I consider ourselves fortunate. We underwent these scans, and the findings were minor enough that we didn't need to seek out any major surgeries or treatments.

My experience with the Prenuvo elective MRI scan was nothing short of game-changing for my well-being.

If you want to learn more about the scan, my experience, or dive deeper into the ethos behind elective MRIs, tune in to the latest mindbodygreen episode with Prenuvo founder Andrew Lacy.