Lifespan

A large study out of China has found drinking green tea at least three times a week can be linked to longer lifespan and lower rates of heart disease and stroke. The same association was not seen in black tea drinkers.

Finding ways to slow down aging would help reduce all kinds of diseases. And now scientists have made a pretty substantial breakthrough, extending the lifespan of worms by a staggering 500 percent by tweaking a couple of cellular pathways.

Gauging the maximum lifespan of wild animals can be difficult, as scientists are limited to examining whichever creatures they capture. Now, however, researchers have developed a method of determining a species' natural lifespan, based on its DNA.

Researchers have extend the lifespan of fruit flies by 48 percent using a triple drug combination made up of drugs already used in people.

Research has revealed the effects of a common type 2 diabetes drug are regulated by metabolites produced by certain gut bacteria.

Provocative study suggests blood tests can predict a person's risk of dying within the next 10 years.

Researchers at the University of Michigan may have found a way to slow aging – in worms at least. The team has identified a molecule in neurons that, when blocked, improves motor function in older worms and increases their lifespan and general health. Similar pathways might be at work in humans too.

Scientists have discovered that a common antibiotic seems to help prevent the protein build-up associated with neurodegenerative diseases. The researchers found that roundworms treated with the drug minocycline had less protein aggregation in their cells and subsequently lived longer.

Research has found that a novel drug cocktail almost doubled the lifespan of a microscopic worm, the largest drug-induced lifespan extension in an animal ever reported. The study suggests that pharmacological intervention to help us live longer could be a realistic proposition.

Research is suggesting diets both low and high in carbohydrates can be associated with a higher risk of early mortality. It's suggested moderate consumption of carbs is the ideal long-term proposition but low-carb diets can be improved if proteins & fats are coming from plant and not animal sources.

A team has successfully developed a combination of herbal supplements and probiotics that can prolong the longevity of fruit flies by 60 percent. The technique is one of the first to successfully show a treatment that modulates the gut microbiome can result in potent lifespan-extending effects.

Studies have shown that caloric restriction can drastically increase the lifespan of a range of animals. On the path to determining whether humans could benefit from the same lifestyle, a 10-year study on lemurs has now found that animals on the diet lived almost 50 percent longer than usual.