Human longevity may increase over time, study finds

After the age of 105, the risk of death in humans slows or even decreases in some cases, according to a new study.

The research, published Friday in the journal Science, suggests that any maximum fixed life span has not yet been reached – and that human longevity actually increases.

"The growing number of exceptionally long individuals and the fact that their mortality in excess of 105 decreases across cohorts – lowering the mortality plateau or postponing the age at which it appears – strongly suggest that the longevity continues to increase over time and that a limit, if any, has not been reached, "wrote the researchers in the study

. Human life requires solid data around mortality at extreme ages, according to the study.But as centenarians are rare, good data have escaped researchers, said Joop de Beer, researcher on population aging and longevity at the Dutch Interdisciplinary Demographic Institute in The Hague, which did not participate in the study.

the question of whether the limits of human mortality are in expansion remained controversial.

" There is a great discussion about the human life span. Some experts say that the probability of dying increases with age, even old age, "said de Beer." And other researchers say that the probability of dying stabilizes in old age and this would imply that people can live until a very advanced age. There is no fixed limit. "

This research" provides compelling evidence that this latter hypothesis is the true one. And it's consistent with what I've found, "according to De Beer.

The new study has shown that even though the risk of dying increases with age – at age 50, the risk of dying is three times higher than at 30 – once we reach the # 39, age 105, this risk trays 50%, meaning you have a chance to live another year.

"Right now, the oldest person in the world, a Japanese woman She has a 50% chance of living up to the age of 118. And once she's 118 years old, she has a 50% chance of becoming 119, "said de Beer

. and 2015. Inaccuracies resulting from insufficient data hampered previous research. However, the quality of the data from this study allowed for a precise examination of extreme mortality, according to the research team.

Before the 19th century, life expectancy averaged between 30 and 40 years. However, considerable advances in technology and medicine have extended life expectancy. The overall life expectancy was 72 in 2016.

Jeanne Calment, a French woman, still holds the record for the oldest person: She was 122 years old when she died in 1997.

The new While the death also showed a slight decline in death rates among people who reach age 105 – a trend that suggests that human longevity could increase over time.

Yet more research with a larger sample is needed to win in the scientific community. to de Beer. It could take a long time.

"The only thing we can do is wait until the number of centenarians increases, especially in Japan," said de Beer. "We would expect more people to reach the age of 110, but it will take time, so I'm afraid the discussion can not be decided in the next two years. "