Healthy eating and exercise might help most people live to a respectable old age, but making it to 95 or 100 might require help from your DNA. A Study led by the professor of biostatistics, found that people who lived to age 90, the chances that their siblings also reached 90 was only about 70 percent higher than for the average person born around the same time. When studied further, it was statistically shown that siblings of people who lived to age 95, had a 3.5 times higher than the normal chance of also reaching the age of 95. For people who lived to 100, the chances of their siblings also reaching 100 was 9 times higher than normal. And for the few who lived to 105, the chances of their siblings also reaching 105 was 35 times higher than normal. Researchers say that genes play a strong role in living to extreme ages. Also, that the combinations of longevity-linked genes that help people live to 95, may be different than the ones who help people live to 105.
I find it interesting that genes play a role in age, especially because it is thought that all you need to live a long life is to be healthy. It would be cool to see if future geneticists could somehow alter genes to lengthen peoples lives.
Very interesting. It makes sense that siblings would most likely posses some of the longer living genes and as a result be more likely to live as long themselves compared to a stranger. I also found it intriguing that the genes helping people live to 95/105 are different.
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