Half of 2009 newborns will live 100 years or more

William Atkins
Saturday, 03 October 2009 18:05

Science - Health

According to a Danish study, over half of the babies born since the year 2000 within developed countries, such as the United States, Canada, Japan, and countries of Western Europe, should live to be centenarians.


The article “Ageing populations: the challenges ahead," by Kaare Christensen, Gabriele Doblhammer, Roland Rau, and James W. Vaupel, states that “If the pace of increase in life expectancy in developed countries over the past two centuries continues through the 21st century, most babies born since 2000 in France, Germany, Italy, the UK, the USA, Canada, Japan, and other countries with long life expectancies will celebrate their 100th birthdays.” [The Lancet (October 3, 2009; volume 374: pages 1196-1208)]

The researchers, from the Danish Aging Research Centre at the University of Southern Denmark, found that people of such developed countries as the United States, France, Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, and Japan, are steadily increasing their life expectancies.

Such people are not showing any signs that such aging trends will slow down in the future. However, they make a special note that obesity may halt increases in life expectancies.

The researchers concluded that healthy behaviors (such as not smoking, eating fruits and vegetables, and exercising) are the key to living longer lives.

These behaviors were seen as occurring much more from people in developed countries than in other countries of the world.

The researchers also concluded that besides living longer, these centenarians will also live their last years of life with fewer disabilities and problems than do seniors today.

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