People are shocked when they rewatch "The Golden Girls" from the 80's.<p>Those actresses were all ~63 when it started (one was 53).<p>But by today's standards, they look like they were all 70-80.<p>It's remarkable what our current "norms" of fitness and nutrition have done. Or conversely, the toll (and associated clearly visible accelerated aging) that normalized heavy drinking and smoking took on older generations.
An aside - I loved the simplicity of the "do you accept our cookies" banner - it just has two buttons "accept" and "decline". Every other design is evil.
This study was done in Finland folks not America. I don't think the same results would hold here for the average person, for the average person living here wrestling with a life time of obesity, debt and stress will make them functionally 100 at the age of 60
Minor piece of anecdote: I have watched my great grandmother, my grandmother, and my mother age. They all look like they aged at different rates: my grandmother at 70 does not look as old as my great grandmother did at 70. My mother at 50 does not look as old as my grandmother did at 50.
I wonder what causes this, my guess is probably many different factors; Finland social programs encouraging exercise, nutrition improved quite a lot, probably the Internet gave people access to new hobbies and interests. There are probably better in person socialising for old people than 30 years ago too.
75-80 years old people as they studied are really not that old to have significant issues with cognitive functions, of course physical functions get hit.<p>My father who will be soon 70 is doing hiking in mountains pretty much all summer, while his mother when she was in her 80s took care about her house, garden and animals and only in the very end with tumor on brain experienced very fast decline.<p>I'd say, just stay active, don't sit at home all the time, if you want to stay in good physical condition and socialize to keep good cognitive functions.
Based on another source, it's expected that people are generally trending from looking 10 years older in this generation to 15-25 years older.<p>Melatonin (sustained-release) is the big secret weapon against aging, especially when started younger (right after growth years). And eating the last meal 3-4 hours before bed or earlier. And meeting all RDAs with just a variety of whole quality foods (most don't meet all RDAs, especially with just food). 1:1:1 calcium:phosphorus:magnesium.
As a guy in his late 20s who just finished grumbling at his TV whilst going through all the steps to reset it, I could have sworn this title was making something of the opposite claim. LOL
This brings to mind the hypothesis that extreme calorie restriction during youth extends lifespan. Finland 75-80 years ago was not a paradise of plentiful food, for that matter neither was most of Western Europe.<p>I know the calorie restriction work has been replicated in the lab with animal models, but of course a human study would face most likely insurmountable ethical challenges.
I wouldn't be surprised if this is dependent on the country of origin. Some countries have seen large increases in life expectancy, others not so much (the US, though this depends on where, people in some states are much more active than those in other states) or are even seeing declines (Russia).
> The functional ability of older people is nowadays better when it is compared to that of people at the same age three decades ago.<p>It better be. I expect the retirement age where I live to be over 70 by the time I retire (it is currently 68)
There was a great Twitter thread last year where it was asked if people in the past looked older when they were younger: <a href="https://twitter.com/BMcCarthy32/status/1210350854571585537" rel="nofollow">https://twitter.com/BMcCarthy32/status/1210350854571585537</a>
Childhood nutrition. Prenatal - 2 years old.<p>Finland has also come from a lower place than their neighbours so it's more pronounced. But childhood nutrition matters.
If people in entertainment look younger, realize that plastic surgery, hair transplants, dental bonding and hormone replacement have all gotten much better, cheaper and more mainstream.
It’s leaded gasoline. My parents generation were poisoned by it and is a significant reason for the dip in the critical thinking skills of this country.
It ain't over till it's over. - Yogi Berra<p><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yogi_Berra#"Yogi-isms"" rel="nofollow">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yogi_Berra#"Yogi-isms"</a>