An overview of simple lifestyle changes that we all can make today to live longer, healthier lives tomorrow — based in scientific research
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Studio photograph of elderly woman’s hand beside a younger woman’s hand.
“And meanwhile time goes about its immemorial work of making everyone look and feel like shit.”
― Martin Amis, London Fields
Death is the one universal that we all share. Whether we are rich or poor, smart or stupid, loved or hated, we all will die. Even Elon Musk will die. Before we die, many of us will age, becoming physically or mentally infirm. These infirmities may lead some of us to, understandably, wish for an early death.
But what would you say if I told you that most people alive now can avoid the worst ravages of aging? That, with some work, we can grow into a dignified old age? As you might expect, this proposition raises general questions: why do some of us live longer than others? Why do we live, on average, twice as long today as our ancestors did 200 years ago? What does the latest science teach us that will help us not only live longer lives but also to live fitter, healthier, and happier lives even in our ‘twilight’ years?
Professor Rose Anne Kenny, whose sub-speciality is cardiovascular medicine, is founder and Principal Investigator of The Irish Longitudinal Study on Aging based at Trinity College Dublin. TILDA is an ongoing 12-year research project that has followed almost 9,000 adults aged fifty and older, and generated more than 400 research papers. This study covers all aspects of life — from sex to food, to physical and brain health, genetics, childhood experiences, expectations, friendships, finance and much more — to understand how and why we age. Based on decades of scientific evidence and experiences, Professor Kenny condenses this treasure-trove of information into a handy guide to aid healthy aging in her absorbing book, Age Proof: The New Science Of Living A Longer And Healthier Life (Lagom/Bonnier Books UK, 2022: Amazon US / Amazon UK).
Age Proof by Rose Anne Kenny. (Bonnier Books 2022.)
Professor Kenny tells us that science shows that 80% of our aging biology is within our control: we can not only live longer but we can become happier and healthier as we grow older. Better, she tells us what we should do now, every day, to modify and improve the rest of our lives.
Throughout the book, Professor Kenny shares scientific studies along with a variety of useful vignettes about individuals whom she works with that can inspire her readers. Stories such as the retired dentist who, after a sedentary life, began body building when he was 87 years old and is still going strong in his mid-90s. (This man’s story made me think of one of my personal sheroes, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader-Ginsberg, who enlisted the services of Bryant Johnson, a former Army reservist attached to the U.S. Army Special Forces, to train and coach Ginsburg twice weekly in the justices-only gym at the Supreme Court after she was weakened by cancer treatments. Although a tiny woman, Ginsberg was able to complete 20 push-ups in a session when she was 80 years old.)
Professor Kenny does something very difficult in this deceptively comprehensive and enjoyable book: she tackles a topic that most people don’t want to think or read about, and makes it truly interesting. She breaks down a big and threatening topic into smaller pieces, providing her readers with illuminating scientific evidence along with inspiring individual stories that could motivate her readers to make meaningful improvements to their lives.
At the end of the book is a 27 page chapter/workbook entitled Test Yourself, where you can work through questionnaires about aspects of your life that correspond to the discussions in the corresponding chapter of the book. Taken repeatedly on, say, a monthly basis, these questionnaires could serve as a helpful gauge for how you are progressing towards your personal goals over time. If you wish to gain a deeper understanding of the scientific studies that Professor Kenny builds her arguments upon, there are 71 pages of citations that include the specific sentence in the chapter that the study supports.
My one big complaint is the author’s recommendations about socializing. The author’s recommendations would, for me, be incredibly stressful. Torture. It may be unthinkable to most people, but my favorite thing to do is to snuggle under a blanket or in front of a cracking fire with a good book and my companion parrots, and read until I fall sleep. People, for me, are absolutely exhausting. Books, on the other hand, are absolutely delightful companions.
Despite my complaint, I was pleasantly surprised by this book. I normally don’t like reading books about aging because they are generally boring or poorly written and really, who wants to read about aging? Not me! But this book was wonderful: informative, readable and mostly optimistic. Professor Kenny provides advice and motivation on how to change aging from an unpleasant event that happens to you into something you can influence to make your life better and more productive. I highly recommend this book for people between the ages of 20 and 120, who wish to better understand their bodies and how to live a healthier and longer life.
Age Proof has been shortlisted for the Royal Society Science Book Prize of 2022.
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