The Most Powerful Drug on Earth Is Free—And You Already Have It.

The article argues that exercise is the most potent medical intervention ever devised, surpassing any single drug. It highlights the view of Euan Ashley, Stanford’s chair of medicine, who calls exercise a “miracle drug” due to its widespread benefits.

This claim is supported by two key pieces of evidence:

1. A study where rats on treadmills showed comprehensive improvements across nearly every organ and molecular system—effects too broad for any single pill to replicate.
2. A New England Journal of Medicine study demonstrating that a structured exercise program significantly increased cancer-free years and overall survival rates in advanced colon cancer patients.

The article concludes that modern exercise effectively simulates the necessary physical stress our bodies evolved to handle, providing profound molecular benefits that no pharmaceutical has ever matched.