# Return on Health

> A podcast on longevity, prevention and the future of health. Hosted by Niko Hems and Miguel Medina Stanivukovic. Researchers, founders, clinicians, skeptics and innovators sit down and pressure-test every claim against the evidence.

## About

Return on Health is an English-language podcast based in Hamburg and Lisbon. The show emphasises intellectual honesty, scientific skepticism, and a preference for fundamentals (sleep, muscle, nutrition, metabolic health) over hype. Every episode centres one question and lets multiple perspectives clash.

Principles: signal over noise · pressure-test every claim · prevention over repair · science plus humility.

Tenets: every side gets a seat · incentives over intentions · healthspan over lifespan · skeptical, not cynical.

## Hosts

- [Niko Hems](https://returnonhealth.de/niko-hems): longevity expert, data-driven health strategist, Head of Growth at [YEARS](https://www.years.co) (a Berlin diagnostics clinic), and founder of [Project Peakspan](https://www.projectpeakspan.com) — an open N=1 biomarker experiment. Master's in Business Analytics (Nova SBE / UC Berkeley) plus a second Master's in Longevity at the Geneva College of Longevity Sciences. Personal site: [nikohems.de](https://nikohems.de). LinkedIn: [niko-hems](https://www.linkedin.com/in/niko-hems/). Instagram: [@niko_hems](https://www.instagram.com/niko_hems).
- [Miguel Medina Stanivukovic](https://returnonhealth.de/miguel-medina): strategic thinker and systems critic. Focus on personalised medicine, incentive analysis, and scientific integrity. LinkedIn: [miguel-medina-stanivukovic](https://www.linkedin.com/in/miguel-medina-stanivukovic-857b9720b/).

## Episodes (most recent first)

- [Geriatrician: Most Aging Is Preventable — We Just Start Too Late](https://returnonhealth.de/episodes/geriatrician-most-aging-is-preventable) — Dr. Roberta Vella Azzopardi (geriatrician, PhD in cognitive frailty) on frailty as loss of physiological reserve, muscle as a metabolic and cognitive organ, peak span vs. lifespan, and why hearing loss and menopause are medicine's biggest blind spots. Published 2026-04-19.
- [The Hidden Phase Before Disease: Why Prevention Starts Earlier Than You Think](https://returnonhealth.de/episodes/hidden-phase-before-disease-prevention-starts-earlier) — Dr. Natalia (Karolinska MD PhD) on the pre-diagnostic window where most chronic disease is actually decided, layered biomarker data, and precision over escalation. Published 2026-04-06.
- [Primary Care Is Broken — Dr. Sukhjit Takhar on Rebuilding Medicine from Scratch](https://returnonhealth.de/episodes/primary-care-is-broken-dr-sukhjit-takhar) — Triple board-certified physician (UCLA, Harvard), co-founder of PrimaryMD, on why 15-minute visits structurally fail prevention and what a longevity-oriented concierge model looks like. Published 2026-03-23.
- [Bridging the Gap in Longevity Care: Insights from Dr. Hilary Lin](https://returnonhealth.de/episodes/bridging-gap-longevity-care-dr-hilary-lin) — Stanford-trained physician on decentralised longevity care, why delivery (not discovery) is the bottleneck, and what AI-era access to medicine should look like. Published 2026-03-07.
- [The Intersection of Longevity, Medicine, and Psychology: Insights from Dr. Rhea Kotecha](https://returnonhealth.de/episodes/intersection-longevity-medicine-psychology-dr-rhea-kotecha) — Functional-medicine physician on metabolic flexibility, why adherence beats protocols, and the gap between biomarker data and human behaviour. Published 2026-02-20.
- [Mastering Midlife: Essential Strategies for Health and Longevity](https://returnonhealth.de/episodes/mastering-midlife-essential-strategies-health-longevity) — Dr. Ali Zaidi (Stanford / UCSF / Penn) on the five pillars for midlife: sleep, exercise, nutrition, stress, social connection. Published 2026-02-13.
- [What Is Return on Health? — The Manifesto Episode](https://returnonhealth.de/episodes/what-is-return-on-health) — Niko and Miguel on why they started the show, the four principles and four tenets that shape it, and how pressure-testing works in practice. Published 2026-02-12.

## Listen

- Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3UmkL9XmmCGIs3jrxSV9CY
- Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/return-on-health/id1876944048
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ReturnonHealthPodcast
- RSS: https://anchor.fm/s/10b4194c8/podcast/rss

## Contact

Email: contact@returnonhealth.de

## Legal

- [Impressum](https://returnonhealth.de/impressum)
- [Privacy Policy](https://returnonhealth.de/privacy)
- [Medical Disclaimer](https://returnonhealth.de/disclaimer) — content is informational and educational only and does not constitute medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.