Better Health & Living: Article: How Long Will You Live?

Issue: November 2008

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How Long Will You Live?

Learn the longevity secrets of people who've hit the 100 mark--and gone past it

by Elizabeth Pope

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Sarah Bottrell of Marquette, Michigan, lives alone in a rambling two-story house with an upstairs bedroom and bath. She sings alto in the church choir, shares nonfiction books with friends, and does her laundry in a wringer washer in the basement.

Hers doesn’t sound like a remarkable life until you learn that Bottrell is 103 years old. Friends say she looks, thinks, and acts 30 years younger than her chronological age. She doesn’t need a cane, a walker, or a hearing aid.

Her longevity, she admits, really puzzles her. “I have no idea why I’ve lasted this long,” says the retired history teacher. “I’ve outlived family members and many of my former pupils.”

Researchers are taking a closer look at centenarians like Bottrell to discover their secrets because by 2050, there will probably be a million of them. They’re America’s fastest-growing population segment. Will you be one of them?

What Keeps Them Ticking

Centenarians don’t have any overt similarities. They come from diverse ethnic, racial, and economic backgrounds, with educations ranging from second grade to postgraduate and incomes from poverty level to wealthy.

“The real common denominator is their resilience,” says Thomas T. Perls, MD, an associate professor at Boston University Medical Center. Dr. Perls is also director of the New England Centenarian Study (NECS), the world’s largest research project studying those who live to be 100 and their families. There are currently 1,500 centenarians and family members enrolled in the study.

Centenarians developed their psychological resilience partly because they’ve had to deal with hardship. They’ve lived through the Depression and World War II, so they’re no strangers to poverty and privation. “But they don’t dwell on their problems,” says Dr. Perls. “They just let go. They’re able to either shed stress or develop coping mechanisms to remain positive.”

They’re also physically resilient. “Many people think the older you get, the sicker you get, but centenarians teach us that the older you get, the healthier you’ve been,” says Dr. Perls, coauthor of Living to 100: Lessons in Living to Your Maximum Potential at Any Age. Men who reach the 100-year mark have generally avoided age-related diseases such as heart disease and cancer. “I’ve never been seriously sick,” says Barrett Nichols, 106, of Sarasota, Florida, and Falmouth, Maine. “I inherited good genes from my father, who was in marvelous shape and lived to be 93.” Centenarian women, on the other hand, somehow overcome serious illnesses such as heart attack and stroke to remain functionally independent late in life.

Is It in Your Genes?

Most longevity experts, when asked for advice on how to live longer, usually respond, “Choose the right parents.” But researchers really aren’t sure how much of a role genes play vis-a-vis lifestyle. “For the average life span, lifestyle habits and environment are probably 75 percent responsible for people hitting 80 in good health,” Dr. Perls says. “There’s probably a stronger genetic component helping people reach very old age.”

Dr. Perls’ team is studying clusters of long-lived siblings, such as Irving Kahn, a 102-year-old New York City stockbroker, and his 106-year-old sister and 98-year-old brother. Another sister died at age 103. Such families often have unusually high levels of HDL, the “healthy” cholesterol. Adult children of long-lived elders are also less likely to have high blood pressure, heart disease, or diabetes, according to a 2002 Boston University study.

Researchers’ best hunch is that a combination of genetic factors and health-related behaviors leads to living a very long life. “Like the lottery, all the numbers must line up correctly in order to win,” says Dr. Perls. The average person is born with enough longevity genes to live to be 85, he adds, but preventive health measures could add another 10 years or more of healthy living. “Making an effort to do what’s right for your health and avoid the bad things is really worth it,” he says.

Win the Long-Life Lottery

Here’s what research suggests will help you celebrate more birthdays.

Don’t be a loner. A strong social network may be a key to living longer. Elders who eat out, play cards, and go to movies live 2.5 years longer on average than their reclusive peers, according to a Harvard study. A surprising number of female centenarians, like Bottrell, never married but have created “families” of friends. “A lot of younger couples treat me like family, inviting me to dinner and for holidays,” she says. Several times a week, Nichols, who lives alone, tees off with younger golfers. “Golf gives him a reason to get up in the morning,” says his daughter, Susan Wagner, 73, of Sarasota.

Stay sharp. Kahn started working on Wall Street in 1928 and at age 102 hits the office daily in spite of snowstorms or cab strikes. Most centenarians have some activity that keeps them active, engaged, and productive. Kahn, chairman of his family investment firm, reads voraciously; the library in his Manhattan apartment holds thousands of books. “I look to the future rather than back at the past,” he says. His son, Tom Kahn, 65, says, “My dad is very inquisitive; he’s like a sponge absorbing information.”

Keep moving. There are no fat centenarians. About 80 percent of the NECS subjects maintained their weights over a lifetime; sensible, moderate diets and physical exercise are common traits. “I’m a small person,” says Bottrell, who is 5 feet 2 inches tall and weighs 117 pounds. “I never smoked or drank, and I’ve always been a walker.”

Be a regular guy (or gal). The Georgia Centenarian Study, which was launched in 1988 at the University of Georgia, found that long-lived people ate breakfast regularly and avoided weight-loss diets and weight fluctuations. Every day, Nichols prepares a breakfast consisting of a soft-boiled egg, orange juice, a banana, and grapefruit. Then he tucks a cigar or two in his pocket and hits the putting green or driving range until it’s time for a hand of duplicate bridge and a whisky sour or rum and tonic in the evening. (Not all centenarians have stellar health habits, says Dr. Perls, but they probably have genetic protection against disease that the rest of us lack.)

Stop your whining. Coping with stress is critical to aging successfully; centenarians master emotional setbacks. On psychological tests, they score low in “neuroticism,” including unhealthy feelings such as anger, fear, guilt, anxiety, and sadness. They stay calm and collected in a crisis. “I don’t make a fuss about things that don’t count,” says Bottrell. Those of us without the innate talent to shed stress might consider yoga, meditation, regular exercise, or other stress-reduction techniques, says Dr. Perls. “We may not be able to change our personalities,” he adds, “but we can change how we respond to stressful situations.”

Veteran journalist Elizabeth Pope writes for national magazines and leading newspapers. A former Peace Corps volunteer, she lives in Maine.

Will You Live To Be 100?

Get a prediction at www.livingto100.com. If your family is long-lived or you have a relative age 100 or older, consider joining the New England Centenarian Study at Boston University School of Medicine; call 888-333-6327 to learn more.