Michael learns how people can keep their hearing, smell and vision super-sharp into old age. He explores the benefits of music and singing by meeting an 86 year old jazz musician in Chicago.

Michael looks for the latest methods to preserve healthy hearts, bones and muscles, visiting Okinawa in Japan, where diet and a sense of community have contributed to low levels of heart disease. On the Faroe Islands, Michael joins a women's football team who are taking part in a study looking at how to improve bone density and prevent the onset of osteoporosis.

In this first episode, Michael focuses on the brain. At the Shaolin Temple in China, he learns how meditation can trigger structural changes in the brain that help to counteract dangerous levels of stress.