The immortality project took a body blow today as the AMA came out in opposition to the use of anti-aging hormones. From the story:

The American Medical Association says there’s no scientific proof to back up the claims of anti-aging hormones. At their annual meeting in Chicago on Monday, AMA delegates adopted a new policy on products such as HGH, DHEA and testosterone used as aging remedies.

With HGH, the AMA says evidence suggests long-term use can present more risks than benefits. The risks include tissue swelling and diabetes. And the AMA says there’s no credible evidence that other hormones, so-called bio-identicals, are safer than traditional estrogen and progesterone products.

The traditional hormones are only recommended for menopause symptoms at the lowest possible dose because of long-term health risks. The AMA says anti-aging hormone promoters need to rigorous studies to prove, or disprove, their claims.

You know, as one who is, it seems to me that aging should not be looked upon as a disease. There are diseases of age, of course, and they should be dealt with medically. But wouldn’t we all be better off understanding that life has its limits, that each age has its benefits and burdens–I would never want to go through the hyper angst of teenage-hood again, for example–and that all have something to contribute, even if it is the gracious receipt of care.

Transhumanism saddens me. It yearns for immortality, a corporeal New Jerusalem that can never be, looking desperately toward a technological “singularity” to save them that will never come. But all is not lost: The fact of death and the debilitation of age should focus our attention so that we get the most out of life–and give our best to it.  And when the harvest time inevitably comes and a new crop is planted, perhaps we will find ourselves glad that we moved onto whatever comes next.