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Genetics play a larger part in lifespan than previously thought (www.nbcnews.com)

submitted 1 day ago by MicroWave@lemmy.world to c/health@lemmy.world

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A person’s lifespan may be up to 55% heritable, according to new research.

A person's genes play a far greater role in likely lifespan than previously thought, according to a major new study published Thursday in the journal Science.

Using data from human twin studies, an international team of researchers arrived at the conclusion that the genetic contribution to how long we're likely to live is as high as 55%.

This new finding is strikingly higher than previous estimates, which have calculated the role of genetics in lifespan could range from 6% to 33%. It’s likely to intrigue — and perhaps disappoint — the fast-growing community of longevity influencers and self-described biohackers touting longer lives through supplements and customized drug regimens.

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[–] Atelopus-zeteki@fedia.io 3 points 1 day ago

Given 45% is due to our choices, we should still make the best choices for ourselves based on our genetics, yes, and also how best, based on the available science, to nurture those genetics. Living one's best life is not just about lifespan, but also healthspan.

Heritability of intrinsic human life span is about 50% when confounding factors are addressed https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adz1187 Abstract How heritable is human life span? If genetic heritability is high, longevity genes can reveal aging mechanisms and inform medicine and public health. However, current estimates of heritability are low—twin studies show heritability of only 20 to 25%, and recent large pedigree studies suggest it is as low as 6%. Here we show that these estimates are confounded by extrinsic mortality—deaths caused by extrinsic factors such as accidents or infections. We use mathematical modeling and analyses of twin cohorts raised together and apart to correct for this factor, revealing that heritability of human life span due to intrinsic mortality is above 50%. Such high heritability is similar to that of most other complex human traits and to life-span heritability in other species.