Characteristics of 2 tall and 4 short people who live to 100 years old

Scientists at the Karolinska Institute (Sweden) studied blood samples from more than 44,000 people aged 64 to 99 for up to 35 years. Accordingly, 1,224 people (2.7%) lived to be 100 years old. 85% of them were women.

They compared 12 biomarkers between the centenarians and noncentenarians. All were associated with mortality.

The indicators include cholesterol and blood sugar, which are markers of metabolism; uric acid, which indicates inflammation; creatinine, a measure of kidney function; iron, which is linked to anemia; albumin, a protein that can signal liver or kidney disease; and more.

According to the magazineGeroScience, the authors claim, is the largest study of its kind. The results showed that higher iron and total cholesterol levels were associated with a higher chance of living to 100 years.

NHS guidelines state that a healthy total cholesterol level is below 5 mmol/L. But in reality, only 2% of people with cholesterol of 5.2 mmol/L or less live to 100, compared with 3% of those with cholesterol of 7.2 mmol/L or more.

Meanwhile, lower levels of glucose, creatinine, uric acid, and liver enzymes signal a possiblelive longhigher. People with the lowest uric acid levels had a 4% chance of reaching 100 years old, while only 1.5% of those with the highest uric acid levels reached 100 years old.

There was no link between albumin and the likelihood of living to be a centenarian. This contradicts a previous study that found higher albumin levels were associated with a longer lifespan.

The authors admit their findings do not take into account lifestyle or genetic factors.

Globally, the number of centenarians has nearly doubled every decade since 1950 and is expected to quadruple between 2022 and 2050.

In April, a study by American scientists found that the only key to living past 100 is having a lot of experience fighting off infections. According to immune profiles, centenarians have had long-term exposure to infections and are more resilient.

Although many believe it's a matter of luck, analyses have found that those who live the longest have fewer underlying conditions, fewer hospital admissions, and better brain health.