Becoming a centenarian while maintaining good health for as long as possible could, in part, have to do with your parents. A team of researchers led by Eric R. Reed of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York looked at how exceptional longevity is transmitted and manifested within families.
For this study, published at the end of August in the specialist journal “JAMA Network Open”, the researchers analyzed data from three longitudinal studies carried out in the United States and the United Kingdom. A total of 4030 people were included in the analysis, of whom 2319 had at least one parent who reached the age of 100.
The results are unequivocal: Across the analysis, descendants of centenarians had a 42% lower risk of death than control groups. According to the statistical models used, they died on average 3.1 years later than people in the comparison group.
Hypertension appears about five years later
Researchers also observed differences in cardiovascular health. Among the descendants of centenarians, the risk of developing cardiovascular disease was 33% lower than that of people in the comparison groups.
The link was also marked when it came to hypertension: descendants of centenarians had a 32% lower risk. Depending on the model used, the onset of hypertension also occurred on average 5.2 years later in them than in people in the comparison groups.
The results regarding cerebrovascular accidents (CVA) have been more mixed. A reduced risk was observed in two of the three cohorts studied, but this association was not found in the British data. Regarding cancer, however, the researchers found no statistically significant difference between the groups.
Is longevity hereditary?
The reality is more complex. The study highlights an association between the exceptional longevity of parents and the health status of their children. However, it does not make it possible to directly determine what part is due to genetic factors, the common family environment or other elements.
Interestingly, however, these benefits remained largely unchanged after controlling for several factors, including smoking, education level, socioeconomic status, alcohol consumption, physical activity and dietary habits.
However, the study does not allow us to rule out the influence of all possible factors. Lifestyle data were partly based on participants’ self-reports, while childhood living conditions could not be fully taken into account. The results must therefore be interpreted with caution and cannot be generalized to all populations.
Researchers now want to determine more precisely which genetic and environmental factors could explain this advantage. Because one thing seems to emerge from the study: centenarians could pass on to their children, beyond their genes, better conditions for aging in good health and living longer.
