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Can we cure ageing?

The Infinite Monkey Cage

CHAPTER

Is There a Genetic Basis to Longevity?

There's clearly a genetic basis to longevity because mice live three or four years, humans live 70. Between 5% and 20% of how long you live is determined by your genes. The real difference comes if you have parents or siblings who made it to an incredibly old age. We know that if you've got a parent or a sibling who made it over the age of 100, you've got 10 times greater chance than the general population doing it yourself. If you talk to these centenarians or even the super centenarians who make it to the age of over 110, they often smoke about as much as the general population. They don't do any more exercise. It just seems

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