At Panthera LIFE, we often talk about the 30+ years you have to enjoy after you retire. If you retire before the “official” age, then that timeframe could extend longer, especially if you have the right genetic makeup.
Just to say, ‘modern’ retirement does not have to mean you stop work completely. It’s just the time when you choose to leave your full-time career. Work then becomes an option rather than a need for a financial return.
Longer retirement, longer lives?
Scientists at the Boston University School of Medicine have studied a population of people who have lived for 100 years or more to see if there were anything in common in their genetic makeup.
It turns out there is.
“This rare population of individuals who reach 100 years or more have a distinct composition of immune cells that provides them with highly functional immune systems.”
Studying the centenarians
The samples came from seven centenarians who are part of the New England Centenarian Study. The study showed that for those who live to 100+, the normal aspects of ageing are “compressed” towards the end of their life. So, they might only lose their mobility in their early nineties, and age-related diseases also affect them much later in life.
Which basically adds up to, if you have the genes for the distinct immune cells and a history of long-lived relatives, you’re more likely to live longer and be less prone to disease.
Of course, it isn’t just about genes. Japan has the largest population of centenarians in the world. One factor to the exceptional number of long-lived people may be the concept of Ikegai. This focusses on living a long and healthy life with purpose. It’s no coincidence that our goal here at PantheraLIFE is to help people “Retire with purpose”.
You look great for your age
The activity provider Treasure Trails surveyed 500 people aged over 60 and found that:
- 46% felt fitter than their parents did at the same age
- 22% claimed to feel 20 years younger than they were
- 64% found that activities such as puzzles helped keep their minds sharp
- 20% said playing with grandchildren made them feel younger too
Planning for an extended retirement
Long life has its benefits, in that you’ve got longer to fit in what you want to achieve. It gives you more time to create a legacy, to make a difference, or to try more new things.
- Capt. Sir Tom Moore raised over £32.79 million in the run-up to his 100th birthday
- Sir David Attenborough, currently aged 96, is presenting his new tv series ‘Wild Isles”.
- 100-year-old volunteer Peter Davies helps young children at his local primary school with their reading.
- 101-year-old Beryl Carr, the NHS’s oldest volunteer, has a cashier role at Friends’ Café at Ealing Hospital, London.
If you’d like help with any aspect of planning your retirement, do get in touch to discuss one to one retirement coaching.
