Specific biomarkers have been found in the blood of long-lived people
The scientific journal GeroScience has published a report on the results of a 35-year study by Swedish scientists comparing biomarkers of people aged 65 to 99 years. The purpose of the study was to examine the likelihood of a person reaching the age of 100.The upshot is that differences in biomarker values in people more than a decade before death suggest that "genetic factors together with lifestyle play an exceptional role in achieving longevity".
What is the relationship between the values of specific biomarkers and the chance of reaching the age of 100 years, asked the Swedish scientists. And to answer it, they followed 44,000 Swedes for 35 years, of whom 1,124 people (2.7%) reached the age of 100, 84.6% of whom were women.
Higher levels of total cholesterol and iron and lower levels of glucose, creatinine, uric acid, aspartate aminotransferase, gamma-glutamyltransferase, alkaline phosphatase, lactate dehydrogenase, and total iron-binding capacity were associated with reaching 100 years of age.
Already at the age of 65 years and beyond, long-lived individuals had more favorable biomarker values than those dying before the age of 100 years. Differences in values between long-livers and non-long-livers more than ten years before death suggested that genetic characteristics of the organism in combination with lifestyle may play an important role in ensuring exceptional longevity.