Do you want to live to a ripe old age? Then let’s hope you’ve been keeping your age biomarkers in check. If you haven’t and you’re over 60 it may be too late.

Swedish researchers from the prestigious Karolinska Institute show Swedes are increasingly living to older ages. Thirty years ago, 85 to 90-year olds were rare, but now the majority of people reach that age – and two per cent even reach the magic milestone of a century.

The astonishing news from Karin Modig, associate professor of epidemiology at the Institute of Environmental Medicine at Karolinska, and researcher of ageing and health, is: “Centenarians are the age group increasing the most now.”

Furthermore, along with her colleagues, she shows it’s possible to predict who has the greatest chance of a very long life even when people are quite young.

The study is based on approximately 44,000 Swedes who had health examinations between 1985 and 1996, aged between 64 and 99. Of these, 1,224 people lived to 100.

“The results suggest that becoming very old is not solely a matter of chance; it also seems to be linked to lifestyle,” says Prof Modig.

By looking at known biomarkers previously linked to ageing and disease, the researchers found that the centenarians had better health than their peers already in their 60s. All but two of 12 biomarkers examined could be linked to increased chances of reaching 100 years. So what are these biomarkers we must keep at healthy levels? Some will already be familiar. Low iron levels reduce your chances, as does low total cholesterol, which can be a marker of disease in the body.

Four of the biomarkers stood out as particularly important: creatinine levels, which indicate kidney health, were almost always normal at age 60 in those who lived to 100. The same was true for liver markers and uric acid levels, a marker for inflammation.

People with the lowest uric acid levels had a four per cent chance of living to 100, while those with the highest had a 1.5 per cent chance.

Blood sugar levels were also rarely above 6.5 mmol/litre. 

Results suggest it may be possible to increase one’s chances of living to 100 by changing your lifestyle, says Modig.

“At the same time, life is not about living according to an algorithm; everyone must find their own balance between risk factors and health factors,” she says.

Sound advice.