America has long fell behind its peer nations when it comes to life expectancy, boasting some of the lowest lifespans for men and women.
However, since the pandemic, life expectancy in the US has been on the rise and Americans today are living longer than in previous generations – with an average lifespan of 79 years.
The average American man lives to 76, while women typically reach 81 thanks to advances in sanitation, antibiotics and modern medicine.
But for some people, living into their 80s is still not long enough, leaving aging experts, wellness fanatics and biohackers asking the question: can science slow aging itself?
Remarkably, some researchers believe the first person to reach 150 might already be alive.
Others argue that advances in genetic, regenerative medicine and artificial organs could eventually push human longevity far beyond today’s limits.
Biohacker Bryan Johnson is pictured above. The 48-year-old has claimed he hopes to achieve immortality by 2039
The prospect has helped fuel a booming longevity movement, led by figures such as ‘biohacker’ Bryan Johnson, the 48-year-old tech entrepreneur who claims to have reversed aspects of his biological age through an intensive – and eye-wateringly expensive – regimen of monitoring, diet and experimental procedures.
At the furthest edge of the field, meanwhile, biotech companies are pursuing ideas that sound more like science fiction than medicine.
Among them is San Francisco start-up R3 Bio, which is exploring ways to engineer entire organ systems in the laboratory.
While the company’s current focus is on creating organ systems for drug testing, the technology has attracted interest from investors who see far-reaching implications for human longevity.
For some longevity enthusiasts, the ultimate goal is no longer simply replacing a failing heart or liver. It is creating biological replacement systems – or even entire engineered bodies – capable of sustaining the human brain long after the rest of the body would otherwise have succumbed to age.
Such visions remain highly speculative. But they illustrate how dramatically the pursuit of longer life has evolved since America’s founding – from crude attempts to ward off infectious disease to ambitious efforts aimed at cheating death. Perhaps permanently.
‘Whether living to 150 becomes routine isn’t really the scientific question anymore,’ Francesco Zen, longevity expert and founder of ZLIFE, told the Daily Mail.
‘The bigger challenge may be getting interventions to people before the ageing process reaches a point where it can no longer be reversed.’
But despite the buzz surrounding experimental anti-aging treatments, Zen believes the most effective ways to extend life are far less glamorous.
‘The most powerful longevity interventions are also the least exciting,’ he said.
‘Fitness, sleep, blood sugar control and healthy hormone levels account for more measurable gains than any supplement stack or cold-plunge protocol.’
Of those, experts say cardiovascular fitness may be one of the strongest predictors of how long a person lives.
A key measure is VO2 max – the maximum amount of oxygen the body can use during exercise. The figure naturally declines with age, but can be improved through regular aerobic activities such as running, cycling and swimming.
One 2018 study involving more than 120,000 Americans found that people who improved their fitness from ‘low’ to ‘below average’ cut their risk of death over the following decade by around 50 percent.
Despite the buzz surrounding experimental anti-ageing treatments, Zen believes the most effective ways to extend life are far less glamorous – such as getting fit
Sleep is also emerging as a major focus in longevity research.
Scientists increasingly believe that both the amount and quality of sleep play an important role in cellular repair and healthy ageing. Research published this year found people who regularly slept between 6.4 and 7.8 hours a night showed lower levels of biological ageing than those who slept for fewer than six hours or more than eight.
Today, some biohackers are experimenting with DIY gene-editing kits – despite concerns that self-administered treatments could trigger dangerous immune reactions or unintended genetic mutations.
Others have embraced peptides – injectable amino acids touted for their regenerative properties – although experts caution that much of the evidence remains preliminary.
Zen warned that the greatest risks often arise when people attempt such interventions without proper medical oversight.
He said: ‘We’re seeing people test increasingly powerful anti-ageing treatments on themselves without doctors monitoring the consequences. That’s where things can become dangerous.’
Experts also caution that many of the most fashionable longevity interventions have raced ahead of the evidence.
‘The compounds with real human evidence are a short list, and most of the exotic stack is expensive hope,’ Robert DeuPree, CEO and founder of Reverse Age Lab, told the Daily Mail.
Even among proven interventions, researchers warn that more is not always better.
‘The biggest mistake I see is people assuming that because fasting helps, cold plunges help, HIIT helps, and heat exposure helps, they should do all of them together,’ said Craig Mullen, founder of Remedy Longevity & Cellular Medicine.
‘That’s where people get into trouble.’
Mullen said piling multiple forms of physical stress onto a body already dealing with poor sleep, work pressures or other demands can have the opposite effect, leading to poor recovery, anxiety and insomnia rather than better health.
While the longevity movement often focuses on what individuals can do today, DeuPree believes truly dramatic increases in human lifespan will require breakthroughs that have yet to arrive.
He said he is ‘optimistic but realistic’ about the prospect of Americans regularly living to 150.
‘We are getting very good at compressing sickness into a shorter window at the end of life, so more people will reach 100 in good shape,’ he said.
‘Blowing past today’s maximum to 150 needs a real breakthrough in the biology of ageing itself, not just better habits.’
Mullen agrees that the immediate future is more likely to revolve around extending healthspan – the number of years spent healthy and independent – than dramatically increasing lifespan.
‘Living longer only matters if you’re maintaining strength, cognition, resilience and independence,’ he said.
‘The exciting part of longevity medicine isn’t necessarily getting everyone to 150. It’s helping more people reach their 90s and beyond while still feeling healthy, active and able to enjoy those extra years.’
