A New Study Says You Can Delay Death—but Not the Speed of Aging
Here's what you'll learn when you read this story:
With incredible changes in our species' lifespan over the past century, some aging experts have pondered whether the biology of aging—or senescence—is changing.
To explore this question, a new study re-examines a popular theory that the rate of aging hasn't changed—it's just been delayed by about a decade.
By analyzing mortality data from Italy, Denmark, France, and Sweden, and refining it to reflect age-related deaths, the researchers show that any deviation among populations is likely a symptom of 'historical shocks' rather than biological changes.
To say that 'anti-aging' is an obsession in the U.S. would be a bit of an understatement. In 2024, for example, experts valued the anti-aging industry at around $52 billion, with every expectation for it to grow beyond $100 billion by the end of the decade. The promise of these products to stop—or, at the very least, curtail—aging's most deleterious effects is a convincing one. After all, haven't we proven over the past decade that improved habits and living conditions can shoot a population's life expectancy into the atmosphere?
However, this picture is much more complicated for scientists studying aging, which is also known as 'senescence.' It can be argued that life expectancy—mostly due to improved nutrition and medical advancements (especially the lowering of the infant mortality rate)—has improved across generations, and it's now expected that the centenarian population in the U.S. will quadruple over the next 30 years. But one question in decades of research in human aging remains unanswered: Could the rate of human senescence somehow be changing across generations?
It's a question that's been pondered for quite some time. The foundations of this mortality-related research date back to the early 19th century, when mathematician Benjamin Gompertz first devised mortality rates. His work showed that, initially, rates started very low, but increased the same percentage year after year. However, the rates continue to grow as we age, sort of like compounding interest in a 401(k). It starts off slow and first, but then it really takes off.
In a new study uploaded to the preprint server aXiv by Silvio Patricio, a research assistant at the Interdisciplinary Centre on Population Dynamics at the University of Southern Denmark analyzed this question by revisiting a theory first postulated by James W. Vaupel in 2010. In his study, Vaupel discovered that the rate of human senescence—the one largely calculated by Gompertz in 1825— hadn't changed among generations, but that the process of aging had been delayed by a decade. Vaupel built this hypothesis from a variety of research dating back to 1994, and found that the slope of mortality largely remained unaltered. However, other studies challenged this theory by finding small-but-persistent variations among aging rates.
'These patterns raise a deeper question: are we seeing real biological change in how humans age—or are we seeing something else?,' Patricio wrote. 'One possibility is that what looks like a change in [the rate of aging] is not biological at all, but historical. Period events—such as World War I, the 1918 flu, or World War II—affect many cohorts at once, just at different ages […]. If such events have lasting consequences, they could subtly distort cohort-level mortality patterns.'
Patricio sets out to settle the matter once and for all. Using a mixture model, the researcher separated senescent mortality (that is, age-related deaths) from general cohort mortality data from France, Denmark, Italy, and Sweden (he also refined the data to lessen the influence of early-life mortality). After developing cohort-specific estimates of the Gompertz slope, Patricio found that aging wasn't perfectly constant across cohorts, and that this was likely due to a drift caused by population shocks that cohorts carry as 'echoes' of these past events—even if they occurred outside their own lifespan.
'Once we filter out non-senescent mortality and account for the accumulation of shared period effects, [the rate of aging] becomes strikingly consistent,' Patricio wrote. 'There is no meaningful trend, and no evidence that the biology of aging is shifting across cohorts. The variation that remains is not biological drift, but the footprint of history—the cumulative result of shocks experienced in calendar time.'
So, if the rate of aging is truly immutable, is the anti-aging industry basically one big snake oil salesman? Well, yes and no. While the rate of aging is remarkably constant across generations and populations, eating well, exercising, and getting enough sleep will still do wonders for your longevity and make sure that the compounding interest of your mortality doesn't catch up with you prematurely.
The rate at which we gray may be an immutable fact of our biology, but that doesn't mean we can't do so with some measure of grace.
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Yahoo
6 days ago
- Yahoo
A New Study Says You Can Delay Death—but Not the Speed of Aging
Here's what you'll learn when you read this story: With incredible changes in our species' lifespan over the past century, some aging experts have pondered whether the biology of aging—or senescence—is changing. To explore this question, a new study re-examines a popular theory that the rate of aging hasn't changed—it's just been delayed by about a decade. By analyzing mortality data from Italy, Denmark, France, and Sweden, and refining it to reflect age-related deaths, the researchers show that any deviation among populations is likely a symptom of 'historical shocks' rather than biological changes. To say that 'anti-aging' is an obsession in the U.S. would be a bit of an understatement. In 2024, for example, experts valued the anti-aging industry at around $52 billion, with every expectation for it to grow beyond $100 billion by the end of the decade. The promise of these products to stop—or, at the very least, curtail—aging's most deleterious effects is a convincing one. After all, haven't we proven over the past decade that improved habits and living conditions can shoot a population's life expectancy into the atmosphere? However, this picture is much more complicated for scientists studying aging, which is also known as 'senescence.' It can be argued that life expectancy—mostly due to improved nutrition and medical advancements (especially the lowering of the infant mortality rate)—has improved across generations, and it's now expected that the centenarian population in the U.S. will quadruple over the next 30 years. But one question in decades of research in human aging remains unanswered: Could the rate of human senescence somehow be changing across generations? It's a question that's been pondered for quite some time. The foundations of this mortality-related research date back to the early 19th century, when mathematician Benjamin Gompertz first devised mortality rates. His work showed that, initially, rates started very low, but increased the same percentage year after year. However, the rates continue to grow as we age, sort of like compounding interest in a 401(k). It starts off slow and first, but then it really takes off. In a new study uploaded to the preprint server aXiv by Silvio Patricio, a research assistant at the Interdisciplinary Centre on Population Dynamics at the University of Southern Denmark analyzed this question by revisiting a theory first postulated by James W. Vaupel in 2010. In his study, Vaupel discovered that the rate of human senescence—the one largely calculated by Gompertz in 1825— hadn't changed among generations, but that the process of aging had been delayed by a decade. Vaupel built this hypothesis from a variety of research dating back to 1994, and found that the slope of mortality largely remained unaltered. However, other studies challenged this theory by finding small-but-persistent variations among aging rates. 'These patterns raise a deeper question: are we seeing real biological change in how humans age—or are we seeing something else?,' Patricio wrote. 'One possibility is that what looks like a change in [the rate of aging] is not biological at all, but historical. Period events—such as World War I, the 1918 flu, or World War II—affect many cohorts at once, just at different ages […]. If such events have lasting consequences, they could subtly distort cohort-level mortality patterns.' Patricio sets out to settle the matter once and for all. Using a mixture model, the researcher separated senescent mortality (that is, age-related deaths) from general cohort mortality data from France, Denmark, Italy, and Sweden (he also refined the data to lessen the influence of early-life mortality). After developing cohort-specific estimates of the Gompertz slope, Patricio found that aging wasn't perfectly constant across cohorts, and that this was likely due to a drift caused by population shocks that cohorts carry as 'echoes' of these past events—even if they occurred outside their own lifespan. 'Once we filter out non-senescent mortality and account for the accumulation of shared period effects, [the rate of aging] becomes strikingly consistent,' Patricio wrote. 'There is no meaningful trend, and no evidence that the biology of aging is shifting across cohorts. The variation that remains is not biological drift, but the footprint of history—the cumulative result of shocks experienced in calendar time.' So, if the rate of aging is truly immutable, is the anti-aging industry basically one big snake oil salesman? Well, yes and no. While the rate of aging is remarkably constant across generations and populations, eating well, exercising, and getting enough sleep will still do wonders for your longevity and make sure that the compounding interest of your mortality doesn't catch up with you prematurely. The rate at which we gray may be an immutable fact of our biology, but that doesn't mean we can't do so with some measure of grace. You Might Also Like The Do's and Don'ts of Using Painter's Tape The Best Portable BBQ Grills for Cooking Anywhere Can a Smart Watch Prolong Your Life?
Newsweek
12-05-2025
- Newsweek
Mom's Hormone Levels While Pregnant Linked to Kids' Physical Activity
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. A mother's hormones during pregnancy can negatively affect her child years later, a new study has cautioned. Boys whose mothers had polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) or elevated testosterone levels during the third trimester of pregnancy appear less physically active by age seven. The effect wasn't seen in girls, but girls exposed to higher testosterone levels in the womb were found to have lower muscle strength at age seven. The study, led by researchers at Odense University Hospital and the University of Southern Denmark, analyzed data from 695 pregnant women and their children. Using an accelerometer—a device that tracks changes in movement—the team measured the physical activity of the seven-year-olds and discovered boys born to mothers with PCOS were less active, particularly on weekends, compared to their peers. Relaxed boy lies on couch playing online virtual video game, use app on internet on smartphone. Relaxed boy lies on couch playing online virtual video game, use app on internet on smartphone. Dima Berlin Additionally, this reduced activity wasn't due to factors like birth weight or the mother's pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI). Instead, it seems directly tied to higher maternal testosterone levels—a hormone that typically spikes during pregnancy and is even higher in women with PCOS. Camilla Viola Palm, the study's lead author, explained that while previous research often relied on questionnaires to gauge child activity, this study's use of objective movement tracking makes its findings especially compelling. "Maternal pre-pregnancy health conditions, like PCOS, may transgenerationally affect the physical activity of boys," she said. Palm also warned that a drop in physical activity, especially on weekends when children have more free time, could set the stage for future obesity and cardiovascular disease (CVD) in these boys. For girls, higher testosterone exposure during pregnancy didn't impact their activity levels but did result in lower muscle strength, which may also have long-term health consequences. This is the latest in a series of findings by the team, which previously showed that boys exposed to higher prenatal testosterone had more body fat by age seven and lower grip strength by age five. The researchers are now planning to follow these children into adolescence to see if the effects persist, potentially impacting obesity, blood pressure and type 2 diabetes risk. "There is only little data on boys regarding PCOS-related metabolic and CVD risk, as PCOS is a female condition by definition," Palm said. The research also suggests the effects of PCOS and the hormone imbalances it causes, may extend to the next generation. The research was presented at the first Joint Congress between the European Society of Pediatric Endocrinology and the European Society of Endocrinology. Do you have a tip on a health story that Newsweek should be covering? Do you have a question about PCOS? Let us know via science@ Reference Palm, C. V., Grøntved, A., Christesen, H., Glintborg, D., & Andersen, M. (2025, May 10–13). Habitual activity and muscle strength in children of mothers with, or without, polycystic ovary syndrome. [Conference presentation]. Joint Congress of ESPE and ESE 2025, Copenhagen, Denmark.
Fox News
01-05-2025
- Fox News
Haunting slave ships found off coast of national park 300 years later: 'Very convincing'
Archaeologists recently made a startling discovery: They found that two 18th-century shipwrecks off the coast of Central America were actually two Danish slave ships. The ships, named Fridericus Quartus and Christianus Quintus, are located in shallow waters off Costa Rica's Cahuita National Park. The 18th-century vessels were shipwrecked in 1710, according to the National Museum of Denmark. "Fridericus Quartus was set ablaze, while Christianus Quintus had its anchor rope cut, following which the ship was wrecked in the surf," the museum's press release noted. "Until now, it has not been clear exactly where the ships were lost." Pictures show divers carefully examining the shipwreck, which shows signs of significant decay from the past 315 years. Though the ships were excavated in 2023, researchers didn't know that they were slave ships until recently. The vessels were long believed to be pirate ships. The excavation involved, in part, taking samples from the wood of the ships, as well as yellow bricks that were part of the ship's cargo. Researchers also conducted dendrochronological analyses — tree-ring dating — to determine where the wood came from. They found it came from Northern Europe. "The timbers originate in the western part of the Baltic Sea, an area that encompasses the northeastern German province of Mecklenburg, as well as Schleswig-Holstein, Denmark and Scania – and that the tree was cut down sometime during the years 1690-1695," the release said. "The wood is, moreover, charred and sooty, which confirms what historical sources say about one of the ships being set ablaze." Divers also found clay pipes, which the museum describes as "ordinary, Dutch-produced pipes that were also used onboard Danish ships." "This provides two pieces that have been missing." "The size, shape and patterns of the pipes suggest that they were produced in the period right before the ships became wrecked in 1710," the press release added. "Clay pipes were rarely used for more than five years." Pictures also show the remarkable yellow bricks that survived the shipwreck, which were produced in Flensburg "for use in Denmark and in the Danish colonies in the 18th and 19th centuries." "In other European countries, other kinds of bricks and stones were in fashion when new buildings were erected," the museum said. "The clay comes from Denmark – quite specifically, from either Iller Strand or Egernsund," the statement added. "Both locations are situated by Flensburg Fjord, which was, in the 18th century, home to a sizeable brick-producing industry." After samples from the excavation were analyzed at the National Museum of Denmark and the University of Southern Denmark, researchers concluded the findings corroborate what historical sources say about the history of the ships. David Gregory, a marine archaeologist at the National Museum of Denmark, said that the results fit "perfectly" with historical accounts about one of the ships burning. "The analyses are very convincing and we no longer have any doubts that these are the wrecks of the two Danish slave ships," Gregory said. "The bricks are Danish and the same goes for the timbers, which are additionally charred and sooty from a fire. This fits perfectly with the historical accounts stating that one of the ships burnt." "We no longer have any doubts that these are the wrecks of the two Danish slave ships." National Museum of Denmark marine archaeologist Andreas Kallmeyer Bloch said he'd "come close to giving up" during the long research process – but is stunned by the results. "This is undoubtedly the craziest archaeological excavation I've yet been part of," Bach said. "Not only because it matters greatly to the local population, but also because it's one of the most dramatic shipwrecks in the history of Denmark, and now we know exactly where it happened." "This provides two pieces that have been missing from the history of Denmark." Fox News Digital reached out to the National Museum of Denmark for additional information.
