New research shows that human life expectancy has potentially reached its maximum.
Recent increases in people’s longevity appear to be slowing, despite being new developments in medicineAccording to a study published in the journal Nature Aging.
The study said that during the 20th century, human life expectancy at birth increased by about 30 years in high-income countries, driven by advances in technology. public health,
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Researchers at the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) analyzed national vital statistics of the longest-living populations in Australia, France, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland, as well as Hong Kong and the United States . From 1990 to 2019.
The study showed that the expectation that human life expectancy will exceed 100 years is probably untrue. (iStock)
Since 1990, average life span in the countries studied has increased by only 6-½ years, casting doubt on expectations that human life expectancy will increase. over 100 years Among people born today.
The researchers concluded that improvements in overall life expectancy have been slow, and that unless the biological aging process can be “markedly slowed” a radical extension of human lifespan is “unlikely in this century”. .
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Study co-author S. Jay Olshansky, PhD, professor of epidemiology and biostatistics at UIC, shared his response in a conversation with Fox News Digital.
“The power of medicine to extend human life is extraordinary.”
“We are demonstrating what actually happened in all of these populations over the past three decades,” he wrote in an email. “The decline in recovery was particularly observed in the United States.”
“As long as aging is unchanged, life extension “There should be little benefit through disease reduction – that’s the overall conclusion in this paper.”
“The period of rapid increase in life expectancy has ended,” the researchers concluded. (iStock)
The researcher also suggested that most people over the age of 60 are living on “constructed time”, meaning they are living on new medical technology,
He said, “We should all be grateful that these life-extending technologies work, because without them, we would be living much shorter lives.”
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Olshansky explained that humans were not meant to live as long as they do now, as the natural life expectancy of humans is 30 to 60 years.
“This means that the vast majority of the population now living over the age of 60 are living on survival times that have been created by medicine,” he said. “The power of medicine to extend human life is extraordinary.”
One of the study authors (not pictured) suggested that humans are living on time created by modern medicine. (iStock)
According to Olshansky, medical interventions can be considered “temporary” bandages for disease reduction.
“Living longer means we are exposing ourselves to the ongoing irreversible force of biological aging – which has already become the leading risk factor for death in high-income countries,” he said.
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More than 30 years ago, researchers predicted that medicine would advance at “alarming speed,” but life expectancy would not keep up, Olshansky said.
He said, “The prediction has come true and…the period of rapid increase in life expectancy has ended.”
A doctor said aging is linked to inflammation, which can be treated with available drugs. (iStock)
Dr. Mark Siegel, Fox News Senior Medical Analyst and Clinical Professor of Medicine NYU Langone Medical CenterThose who were not involved in the study shared their opinions on the findings.
“I disagree with this because aging is associated with inflammation,” he told Fox News Digital.
“New treatments that work in conjunction with current treatments (metformin, Lipitor, Ozempic, etc.) and dietary strategies may reduce oxidative stress, inflammation, and insulin resistance, which contribute to cellular longevity,” the doctor said. “
‘Control what we can control’
According to Olshansky, now is the time for people to focus on health span extension, not life span extension.
“This paper represents the strongest empirical evidence supporting the need to slow aging, because the things we are making now (the straps) could produce extensions of our care – especially if they make us Are live longer And deep into the red zone of aging, where frailty and disability predominate.”
“We now have an argument for why extending the health span should be our primary goal,” one researcher (not pictured) told Fox News Digital. (iStock)
Olshansky advised the public to “control what we can control” and avoid activities that shorten life span, such as unhealthy foodSmoking and substance abuse.
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The scientist also encouraged people to take advantage of access to medicine by visiting their doctor and taking prescribed medications.
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“Social Determinants of Health – Leverage Education and Access medical care “Because these interventions work to increase the chances of living longer and healthier,” he said.
“And then focus on expanding the most precious commodity on Earth – healthy life.”
