Growing old (dis)gracefully

More people than ever are now reaching the fine and goodly age of 100 years. Some factors such as genes are, of course, beyond our control. But the science of longevity is starting to divulge how to thrive longer, and maybe at least as importantly to be happy and healthy as we unavoidably embrace the latter epochs on our own personal journeys.

There is no doubt that physical activity is of great importance for manifold reasons, with the total absence thereof thought to account for nearly four million premature deaths each year. That sufficient exercise also reduces the risk of many chronic illnesses is also now a given. Yet, our world’s oldest persons rarely make mention of rigorous fitness regimes. A life of moderate regular exercise such as gardening or walking is usually what they report.

The WHO’s guidelines say that adults should enjoy a minimum of 150 to 300 minutes of moderate physical activity a week. This could be brisk walking, or any movement that leaves you able to talk but not sing. Our muscle mass also starts to decline as early as in our 30s, so starting to exercise around that time or into middle age if not already doing so seems to be wise to help invest in a long and healthy life.

When centenarians are asked “how do you do it?” the answer also often refers to food. The oldest person in the world last year Maria Branyas Morera, who died at 117, put it down to eating three yoghurts a day. The oldest person ever was a French lady named Jeanne Calment, who passed in 1997 at the age of 122. She put her longevity down to a diet rich in olive oil, along with chocolate and the odd glass of port. Based on a huge data analysis, researchers at the University of Bergen concluded that the average person could extend his/her healthy lifetime by nearly a decade by drastically cutting down on sugar, dairy, refined grains and red meat and replacing such with a diet largely of fish, nuts, vegetables and legumes. And it’s never too late – a 60 year-old making such a switch today could lengthen his/her lifetime by some six or seven years. Studies of a similar ilk in Australia and the US came to pretty much the same conclusions, with respondents also reporting little alcohol consumption and a low salt intake. High salt consumption has, after all, proved to be a causal factor in the world’s biggest killer, cardiovascular disease.

Mindset and psychological well-being are now also widely accepted as crucial factors as we get older. Quality relationships and social ties result in a lower risk of depression and better cognition in later years. Close relationships have been shown to have a positive effect on our immune systems and hormones. Several studies have even shown that wounds literally heal quicker among people in good relationships. Loneliness is also a source of depression and cognitive decline. A sense of purpose has also been shown to have positive effects such as lowering stress levels and promoting a healthier way of living.

The importance of our microbiome is now also becoming increasingly clear. One line of thought is that we should not think of ourselves as a human but as a holobiont – an assembly of human cells along with the trillions of microbes that live on and inside us. It is now more than a century ago when zoologist Élie Metchnikoff postulated that the cause of senility was “putrefactive bacterial autotoxins” and recommended a simple lifestyle and fermented milk as a remedy. This early insight is now bolstered by the knowledge that our microbiome influences everything from metabolism and digestion, to immune system and brain function. The microbiome changes as we age, but we can still give it a nudge in the right direction. Prebiotics have been shown to have some effect, while switching to a Mediterranean diet has proved to result in more microbial diversity and boosted gut microbes important when ageing.

Some medicines now available such as Wegovy, Ozempic and metformin also seem to have favourable effects on the biological ageing process besides their original purposes. But these potions are not (yet) used to “treat” ageing.