Exceptional Longevity

States that the number of genuine long-livers is exploding and a substantial proportion of new-borns in developed countries may survive to celebrate their 100th birthday. This book examines the storied realms of exceptional longevity.

While not quite on a par with Mel Brooks' 2,000 Year-Old Man, this volume reports on some folks who've been around for a long time. Contributors to 15 papers indicate that such longevity rarely existed prior to the 19th century. Appends statistical data on predicting age distribution, and documentation of a family's exceptional longevity. Lacks an index. Distributed in the US by ISBS. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

How long can humans live? This open access book documents, verifies and brings to life the advance of the frontier of human survival. It carefully validates data on supercentenarians, aged 110+, and semi-supercentenarians, aged 105-109, stored in the International Database on Longevity (IDL). The chapters in this book contribute substantial advances in rigorously checked facts about exceptional lifespans and in the application of state-of-the-art analytical strategies to understand trends and patterns in these rare lifespans. The book includes detailed accounts of extreme long-livers and how their long lifespans were documented, as well as reports on the causes of death at the oldest ages. Its key finding, based on the analysis of 1,219 validated supercentenarians, is that the annual probability of death is constant at 50% after age 110. In contrast to previous assertions about a ceiling on the human lifespan, evidence presented in this book suggests that lifespan records in specific countries and globally will be broken again and again as more people survive to become supercentenarians. ​

Does human mortality after age 110 continue to rise, level off, or start to decline? This book describes a concerted, international research effort undertaken with the goal of establishing a database that allows the best possible description of the mortality trajectory beyond the age of 110. The International Database on Longevity (IDL) is the result of this ongoing effort. The IDL contains exhaustive information on validated cases of supercentenarians (people 110 years and older) and allows unbiased estimates of mortality after age 110. The main finding is remarkable: human mortality after age 110 is flat at a probability of death of 50% per year. The sixteen chapters of this book discuss age validation of exceptional longevity, data on supercentenarians in a series of countries, structure and contents of the IDL, and statistical analysis of human mortality after age 110. Several chapters include short accounts of specific supercentenarians that add life to demographic research.

During the last 25 years, life expectancy at age 50 in the United States has been rising, but at a slower pace than in many other high-income countries, such as Japan and Australia. This difference is particularly notable given that the United States spends more on health care than any other nation. Concerned about this divergence, the National Institute on Aging asked the National Research Council to examine evidence on its possible causes. According to Explaining Divergent Levels of Longevity in High-Income Countries, the nation's history of heavy smoking is a major reason why lifespans in the United States fall short of those in many other high-income nations. Evidence suggests that current obesity levels play a substantial part as well. The book reports that lack of universal access to health care in the U.S. also has increased mortality and reduced life expectancy, though this is a less significant factor for those over age 65 because of Medicare access. For the main causes of death at older ages -- cancer and cardiovascular disease -- available indicators do not suggest that the U.S. health care system is failing to prevent deaths that would be averted elsewhere. In fact, cancer detection and survival appear to be better in the U.S. than in most other high-income nations, and survival rates following a heart attack also are favorable. Explaining Divergent Levels of Longevity in High-Income Countries identifies many gaps in research. For instance, while lung cancer deaths are a reliable marker of the damage from smoking, no clear-cut marker exists for obesity, physical inactivity, social integration, or other risks considered in this book. Moreover, evaluation of these risk factors is based on observational studies, which -- unlike randomized controlled trials -- are subject to many biases.

This book explores various aspects related to human longevity and aging beyond 100 years old. It examines all domains of health and well-being of this elite group including the current demographics, genetics and epigenetics of exceptional longevity, cardiovascular risk factors, dementia, nutrition, physical activity, African American and Hispanic centenarians, financial planning, religion, spirituality, whole health, wellness, oral health, and nature. The book also delves into the lives of supercentenarians, defined as expert survivors who have lived beyond 110 years old. The implications of the Age-Friendly Healthcare Systems (AFHS) Movement on the care of centenarians are also discussed. This book is a valuable resource for healthcare professionals, epidemiologists, public health professionals, policy makers, and anyone interested in the study of aging and longevity.

Positive Ageing and Learning from Centenarians evaluates the mechanisms of positive ageing in a uniquely interdisciplinary way to explore the question of how we age and how some people age successfully. Drawing together the findings of recognised longevity researchers from around the world, the book applies an integrated vision to educational and social aspects of human ageing. It examines research into centenarians, and considers most of the disciplines related to longevity and healthy aging and aspects such as education, psychology, philosophy, anthropology, demography, sociology, economics as well as those related to nutrition and biological factors of longevity. The book examines how the results of these scientific investigations could improve the well-being of the oldest olds in the future, especially in the context of ageing societies. It provides an answer to the question of what we can learn from centenarians and what lessons we can from their lifestyle, which can contribute to live longer, better and happier. Based on cutting-edge research, the book will be highly relevant reading for researchers, academics and students in the field of ageing and longevity, mental health research, health science, gerontology and psychology.