Gene & Lifestyle increase life expectancy

Genes and lifestyle: life expectancy is increasing

29/12/2014

The life expectancy of the world population has increased significantly. How old a person becomes depends on various factors, such as lifestyle or genes. People who live in remote regions can hope for a particularly long life.

People live longer and longer
People are living longer and longer worldwide. More than 700 researchers have recently come to this conclusion, claiming to have produced the most comprehensive and up-to-date analysis of annual deaths for 188 countries and 240 causes of death. In the journal „The Lancet“ The scientists reported that the life expectancy of the world's population has risen by more than six years from 65.3 to 71.5 years over the past 15 years. However, there are sometimes serious differences between this plus regionally and between the sexes.

Diarrhea deaths halved
„It is a very encouraging trend for people to live so much longer today“, said Christopher Murray of the University of Washington at Seattle, who „Global Burden of Disease Study“ (GBD). In particular, the poverty belts of the earth would benefit. In the meantime, significantly fewer people are dying of infectious diseases such as tuberculosis or measles. And in 2013, 51 percent fewer people worldwide died of diarrhea than in 1990. „For people today, it is less likely for their parents to die from certain diseases“, so Murray. However, one exception is the sub-Saharan African countries, where life expectancy fell by around five years in the same period, mainly due to the continued spread of the AIDS immunodeficiency syndrome.

Many over centenarians in formerly isolated regions
In a recent post throws the „world“ The question arises as to why the differences in increased life expectancy vary across regions and between genders. An improvement in medical care and hygienic conditions associated with increased life expectancy can not clearly explain the phenomenon. Because in countries that occupy top positions, such as Switzerland, Andorra or Japan, not so much has changed in recent years. So why are women from Andorra, with an average of 86.7 years, a good 3.5 years older than women in Germany? And why do Japanese people live longer than Germans? As the „world“ This is not due to a better medicine, but other factors seem to increase life expectancy. It is noteworthy that there are many centenarians everywhere where societies have closed off in recent centuries and only opened up in recent decades. For example, in Andorra or mountain villages in Switzerland or islands such as Sardinia.

Genes play an important role
„Healthy aging is inherited to a significant degree“, said Claudio Franceschi from the University of Bologna, according to the „world“. Isolated societies can accumulate not only disease genes but also age genes. In the remote regions, they were less likely to be kicked out of the pedigrees by pairing with other humans who had no age genes. Accordingly, the selection played in the sense of „survival of the fittest“ It does not matter here, because it is irrelevant for the preservation of the species, whether a human becomes 70 or 90 years old after its reproduction.

Lifestyle essential for life expectancy
Lifestyle plays an important role in life expectancy. To make this clear, the „world“ back to a bizarre example from the UK. Researchers at the University of Bristol had found that "the risk of death for a man shaving every day drops by a good third". This is not because of shaving, but because "the regular razors lived more often in fixed relationships and smoked less often". Routine and discipline therefore keep healthy. The psychologist Howard Friedman, who over decades compared the personality traits of 1,500 men and women with their death rates, came to a similar conclusion: „Who is economical, persistent, detail-oriented and responsible, lives the longest.“

Do without alcohol, smoking and red meat
Just how many lives and which lifestyle costs a few months ago, scientists from the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) in Heidelberg in a study. Anyone who keeps their fingers off cigarettes, refrains from alcohol and red meat, and avoids overweight, can live up to 17 years longer, so their conclusion. This is partly because smoking greatly increases the risk of diseases such as lung cancer, heart attack and stroke, excessive alcohol consumption promotes disorders such as fatty liver or gastritis, and the consumption of red meat with significant health risks such as a disease of pancreatic cancer, bladder cancer or diabetes related is brought. The risk of diabetes is also significantly higher in people with severe overweight (obesity). And by minimizing such dangers, life expectancy also increases.

Office life is not planned in evolution
As the „world“ continue to report, also shorten long sitting and lack of exercise life. The paper focuses on a US study that showed that men who sat six hours a day or more developed a 20 percent higher mortality rate than the up to three-hour seaters. For women, the rate has even gone up by 40 percent. James Levine of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester says sitting is stressful for people. „We simply do not have the conditions.“ Office life had not been planned in evolution. The expert uses the explanation to Stone Age people who, if at all, would have sat only in the heel. „When, however, in the course of civilization special seating was introduced“, so Levine, „he was suddenly able to stay extremely long and extremely passive.“

Skeptical-pessimistic attitude reduces risk of death
The high number of centenarians in Sardinia could also coincide with their „pessimistic mind“ a cautious skepticism that prevents people from losing themselves in deceptive hopes. As the „world“ writes Frieder Lang from the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg with colleagues from Switzerland could prove that such a skeptical-pessimistic attitude reduces the risk of death by ten percent. Accordingly, pessimistic expectations for the future rather encouraged this, „even better to pay attention to one's own health and to protect oneself against dangers“, so long. In addition, pessimists sparingly dealt with their forces and did not exhaust themselves in achieving unrealistic goals.

Seniors should not celebrate a birthday
Another bizarre example shows what influence everyday life can have on life expectancy: "Birthday celebrations". According to researchers from the University of Zurich, based on death data from more than two million people, the risk of their own demise jumps by 14 percent on a birthday and by 20 percent in the case of women over the age of 60. The causes are called "infarcts, strokes and falls". In addition, the probability that "a person commits suicide on his birthday, increased by 35 percent." According to study leader Vladeta Ajdacic-Gross, one reason for this could be the increased alcohol consumption. In addition, the celebration of one's birthday for many seniors is also a nerve-racking stress. (Ad)

Picture: Uschi Dreiucker