Genes predict living beyond 100

good contributions from everyone. the topic is some much better when people add that personal touch. well done.

From those very elderly people that I've seen (and I've seen a great deal due to personal circumstances) the vast majority of them are not living a good/happy quality of life. They either suffer physical or cognitive problems (often both) that render their quality life rather unpleasant. A trip to your local nursing home facility will illustrate my point herein. Now, if medical science could make our 80s and 90s more like what we now see in people's 60s and 70s I'd be willing to say age extension is a good idea...until then, probably not such a hot idea. I can vouch for that Lilly. My mum-in-l... [More]

Living to be a 'ripe old age' is worth absolutely nothing without your health, physically or mentally. I wouldn't say absolutely nothing. I have a feeling there is some value in that, however difficult it may be for us to comprehend.

I wouldn't say absolutely nothing. I have a feeling there is some value in that, however difficult it may be for us to comprehend. I know what you mean but it is very difficult to see someone who used to be the life and soul of the family turn into a person who can't do anything for herself now, and doesn't even know who we are anymore. She's still very much part of the family even though she's trapped inside a world of her own and has no quality of life. It's really hard to understand the value in that for her though

I think all people have value regardless of their disabilities. I just, personally speaking, would not want to have the type of life that most very elderly people (not the healthy exceptions) experience for the final years of their life. Take a long hard look at someone with severe Alzheimer's, or a stroke patient...then tell me you'd be ok with living like that yourself.

I think all people have value regardless of their disabilities. I just, personally speaking, would not want to have the type of life that most very elderly people (not the healthy exceptions) experience for the final years of their life. Take a long hard look at someone with severe Alzheimer's, or a stroke patient...then tell me you'd be ok with living like that yourself. I agree with you Lilly. My mother now lives in a old-peoples-home (I don't know the proper English word for it). She always was a very independent woman, but now she is dependent on many specialized people to take care of her... [More]

Interesting topic...I'm still quite young but I really don't want to live that long, 60-70 would be a limit for me. My great grandfather died when he was 99, I never talked to him that much because he only spoke italian, but he couldn't do anything by himself, needed hearing aids and, what could be considered the worst, he lived long enough to see 4 of his children die, something that made him wonder why they passed away instead of himself. Surely that is not the kind of life I'd like for myself, it is not just about what your body would be like, but also everything you witnessed, after some t... [More]

I know what you mean but it is very difficult to see someone who used to be the life and soul of the family turn into a person who can't do anything for herself now, and doesn't even know who we are anymore. She's still very much part of the family even though she's trapped inside a world of her own and has no quality of life. It's really hard to understand the value in that for her though It is extremely difficult, I know exactly how you feel. Who wants an extremely long live, when for a big chunk of said long life you could be unable to care for yourself? I don't. Sure, you do read about tho... [More]

So, would I want a very long life? If I were going to be free from mental and physical health problems, then maybe. But the chances of that happening are very, slim. Another thing to consider is, as we get older so does everyone else around us. We may even end up being the only member of our family still alive. I would hate to be in that position. If everyone else has gone I don't want to be around either.

Another thing to consider is, as we get older so does everyone else around us. We may even end up being the only member of our family still alive. I would hate to be in that position. If everyone else has gone I don't want to be around either. True, I thought about putting something about this in my post. Even if you still have younger family around when you're 100, say, most of your generation, your partner, your friends and acquaintances might not be. I'd hate to live to that age, only to be bored and lonely.