Remember when we were young and thought we'd live forever? We are, in fact, living longer, but time still takes its toll on our bodies, from extra pounds to wrinkles and aches. Our hearts may not pump as well as they once did, and there are leaks, fading vision, so-called “senior moments,” and maybe even a cancer diagnosis.
Like a machine, everything in our bodies is interconnected—and the bits and pieces eventually malfunction. Dr Berndt KleineGunk, a gynaecologist and head of the German Society for Anti-Ageing Medicine, suggests we think of the human body as a basket of apples in which one rotten specimen can infect the others. In medical terms, these “rotten apples are called senescent, or zombie, cells, because they continue to age but stop dividing and refuse to die. As they accumulate, they contribute to everything from age spots to cancer.
In other words, rather than cells that divide and spark health, we've got zombie cells eliminating it, says Dr Kleine-Gunk. “That's why scientists are looking at what happens when zombie cells are removed from the body before they cause damage.
With 727 million people over the age of 65 in the world-a number expected to jump to 1.5 billion by 2050-scientists are making significant strides in the field of gerontology, with better diagnostics and more advanced treatments. Dr Kleine-Gunk points to the number of startup companies working on drugs that either suppress the damaging molecules that zombie cells secrete or kill them outright.
He also mentions clinical trials in the US collectively known as TAMETargeting Ageing with Metformin-a drug used to treat Type II diabetes. The trials came about when researchers found that patients taking metformin outlived non-diabetics, and that, in separate studies, it had a preventative effect on dementia, heart disease, and cancer.
Denne historien er fra March 2022-utgaven av Reader's Digest UK.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent ? Logg på
Denne historien er fra March 2022-utgaven av Reader's Digest UK.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
EVERY SECOND COUNTS: TIPS TO WIN THE RACE AGAINST TIME
Do you want to save 1.5 seconds every day of your life? According to the dishwasher expert at the consumer organisation Choice, there’s no need to insert the dishwashing tablet into the compartment inside the door.
May Fiction
An escaped slave's perspective renews Huckleberry Finn and the seconds tick down to nuclear Armageddon in Miriam Sallon’s top literary picks this month
Wine Not
In a time of warning studies about alcohol consumption, Paola Westbeek looks at non-alcoholic wines, how they taste and if they pair with food
Train Booking Hacks
With the cost of train travel seemingly always rising, Andy Webb gives some tips to save on ticket prices
JOURNEY TO SALTEN, NORWAY, UNDER THE MIDNIGHT SUN
Here, far from the crowds, in opal clarity, from May to September, the sun knows no rest. As soon as it’s about to set, it rises again
My Britain: Cheltenham
A YEAR IN CHELTENHAM sees a jazz festival, a science festival, a classical music festival and a literature festival. Few towns with 120,000 residents can boast such a huge cultural output!
GET A GREEN(ER) THUMB
Whether you love digging in the dirt, planting seeds and reaping the bounty that bursts forth, or find the whole idea of gardening intimidating, this spring offers the promise of a fresh start.
Under The GRANDFLUENCE Suzi Grant
After working in TV and radio as an author and nutritionist, Suzi Grant started a blog alternativeageing.net) and an Instagram account alternativeageing). She talks to Ian Chaddock about positive ageing”
Sam Quek: If I Ruled The World
Sam Quek MBE is an Olympic gold medalwinning hockey player, team captain on A Question of Sport and host of podcast series Amazing Starts Here
Stand Tall, Ladies
Shorter men may be having their moment, but where are the tall women?