For Most Centenarians, Longevity Is Written in the DNA

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1st July, my Mother would have been 100 today, had she lived just 2 more years!
At 98 she was a testiment to hard work, sacrifice, faith and simple living . . . raised my 5 half sisters (included set of twins) as a "solo-mother" with them all under the age of 7, . . NO disposable diapers, washingmachine/dryer, babymonitors, nanny, etc, etc, things that are deemed to be SO necessary today, . . and Mothers today find it hard with 1 child!

Bryan, frm New Zealand 5:26AM July 03, 2010

1st July, my Mother would have been 100 today, had she lived just 2 more years!
At 98 she was a testiment to hard work, sacrifice, faith and simple living . . . raised my 5 half sisters (included set of twins) as a "solo-mother" with them all under the age of 7, . . NO disposable diapers, washingmachine/dryer, babymonitors, nanny, etc, etc, things that are deemed to be SO necessary today, . . and Mothers today find it hard with 1 child!

Bryan, frm New Zealand 5:14AM July 03, 2010

No matter how old you think you're going to live to - enjoy your friends and keep making new ones. This adds zest to an otherwise routine life.

Old of CA 5:13AM July 03, 2010

each full moon if you indulge in parakeet droppings on a cracker you will live a long time....parakeet droppings are full of phosphorus and vitamin d-3!!!!

randy of AL 2:48AM July 03, 2010

I believe its from eating lots of froots of the looms what do you all think?

bob of IL 2:38AM July 03, 2010

That's funny - if you are a vegetarian you will live to be 100+ years. Nope - sorry. I think it's great to be a vegetarian - go for it. But my grandmother who died just two months shy of 102 was nothing of the sort. Just your average eater who was neither a big carnivore nor an over-eater of vegetables and fruits. She never really exercised but didn't shy away from a good walk. In fact, I discovered she put half-and-half on her cereal - no lie. She never smoked and drank little alcohol, but I wondered whether it wasn't just because she was the sweetest person in the world and had a great attitude up to the end of her days. Who knows - maybe I've inherited her genetic combination. We'll see...

annie of MT 1:25AM July 03, 2010

stop eating animals and you will live 100+ years...
eat what god provides via the earth and let the animals be happy so we can all coexist and stop harming the planet...
if you dont think that its the diet, look into the "china study" or "how to be alive at 100 yrs old"....
yes... i'm vegan and live off the land, amongst many happy animals....

sean of CA 1:13AM July 03, 2010

everyone dies around 60 ,give or take 20 years.......anyone over 80 is last leaf on tree........

alfonso freda of NJ 7:32PM July 02, 2010

Noli Dugan of WA: Or umm... maybe the prevalence of these gene variants is higher in the Japanese population?
As of right now we simply don't have the answer one way or another. If indeed the Japanese tend to live longer than people from other populations, it could be due to genetics or environment or a combination of both (most likely).
For all we know the people of Somalia could be the most genetically predisposed to the longest life spans, but we just don't realize it because they tend to die early due to environmental factors, etc.
Obviously lifestyle and environment play a major role in allowing individuals to reach their genetic potentials, but its not correct to assume that genetics makes no difference.
And furthermore it can be harmful, or at least wasteful and unproductive, to do so.
Let's say, for example, that the Japanese do have much higher rates of gene variants that contribute to longer life spans, and that in fact the major cause of longer life spans in Japan is actually genetic, not environmental. In such a case encouraging people from different genetic backgrounds to pursue a Japanese lifestyle in hopes of prolonging their life could lack results at best could cause people to waste resources and make themselves less happy for nothing at worst.
But, we have to find out first before we make assumptions one way or the other. Certainly it doesn't hurt to take what are widely agreed upon healthy living measures, but we can't just assume that the results we see in different populations are purely due to environment/practices and not also heavily influenced by genetics.

jeff of CO 2:40PM July 02, 2010

The human life span is 120 years. Life-expectancy is 79 years. So, there are 41 missing years. What makes some individuals acheive 100-plus years? Meta-analysis of peer-reviewed research demonstrates that 20-25 percent of longevity is determined by genetics and the remaining factors are related to lifestyle: nutrition and diet, exercise, sense of purpose, positive outlook on life.
As a case in point, the world's older population increases by 800,000 per month, and the greatest gains in life-expectancy has occurred in developing countries, suggesting that lifestyle improvements: health care, nutrition, diet, sanitation are the keynote determinants, not genetics.
David J. Demko, PhD, doctoral grad University of Michigan, certifications in human aging, geriatric assessment and retirement education.

David J. Demko, PhD of FL 2:37PM July 02, 2010