Earlier this year, scientists from India and UCLA working together on a study of lab rats showed remarkable promise for defying aging. Using a series of injections, they kept one rat living well past his expected lifespan—the equivalent of 170 human years.
Over the past few months, we’ve heard a lot about how to avoid outside threats like COVID-19. This threat is real—life expectancy fell by several years during the Spanish flu of 1918. But it trended upward again just a few years later. Despite this terrible pandemic, we are still on track to live longer than ever before. Long term, it’s the inside threats we should be more focused on.
We believe longevity will not only be the next disruptor to our society, but the greatest disruptor ever. The changes will be fast, and they will be radical. Investments in aging and longevity research have increased exponentially since 2010. There’s a very high chance that sometime between 2025 and 2035, the typical 95-year-old will look and function like the typical 50-year-old today. Ninety-five won’t be an upper age range then; it will be the norm.
On the face of it, the prospect of living to 130 or beyond might not sound all that appealing—especially if it means your dinner consists of puréed peas and that you can’t hear the night nurse tell you they’re puréed peas and not pistachio pudding. But that’s not the future longevity holds.
Today, researchers are focused on advancements that affect longevity in two different ways: Rejuvenation and regeneration. Here’s how they work:
Rejuvenation: These advances slow the aging process, helping you “act” younger.
Regeneration: What’s better than having cells act younger? Having them actually be younger. This will exponentially increase our lifespans.
Between advances in medicine and the choices you make, you will have the ability to not only live longer, but live younger and live better.
This doesn’t happen if you don’t make the appropriate health and lifestyle choices. Continue exercising, eating well, visiting the doctor regularly, combating stress, stimulating your brain and maintaining social connections. Before you know it, you could be well on your way to 130 years old.
Fast Facts About Life Expectancy
- Worldwide, life expectancy is 73.2 years.
- An American man who is currently 30 can expect to live to be 78 years old.
- An American woman who is currently 30 can expect to live to be 82 years old.
- A century ago, life expectancy in the U.S. was just 54 years.
- Hong Kong has the highest life expectancy in the world at 85.29 years. It’s followed closely by Japan at 85.03 years, Macao at 84.68 years and Switzerland at 84.25 years. The United States comes in at No. 46.
- The oldest person alive (as of press time!), Bob Weighton of the U.K., is 112 years old.
Read next: The 7 Laws of Healthy Old Age
This article originally appeared in the September/October 2020 issue of SUCCESS magazine.
Photo by Olena Yakobchuk/Shutterstock.com