Fifteen minutes ‘added to our life expectancy every hour’
- Ageing expert claims people could spend most of their lives as pensioners
- While some may not inherit from grandparents until they are in their 80s
- By the end of the century there will be 1.5 million centenarians in the UK, currently there are 14,500
Tom Payne For The Daily Mail
26
View
comments
Life expectancy is increasing at a rate of fifteen minutes each hour, according to an expert in ageing.
Babies born today are now expected to live to 104 on average, Professor Sarah Harper of Oxford University said.
She warned that people living longer will trigger huge challenges for society and we will have to rethink how we lead our lives, such as whether marriage should last for a lifetime.
Babies born today are now expected to live to 104 on average, Professor Sarah Harper of Oxford University said
People could spend much of their lives as pensioners, while some may not inherit from grandparents until they are in their 80s.
By the end of the century there will be 1.5 million centenarians in the UK. Currently there are 14,500.
-
Children who are obese at the age of 10 have damaged…
Tiny telescope inserted into your eye that 10 TIMES stronger…
Speaking at the Hay Festival, Professor Harper, who founded Oxford’s Institute of Ageing, said we are ‘pushing back death considerably’ and half the population now could reach their eighties.
She said: ‘We are gaining roughly 2.5 years of life expectancy per decade, or fifteen minutes an hour. Predictions suggest that, of the babies that are currently being born, the real life expectancy will be 104. In Japan it is 107.
‘We are really talking about extending lives in a way we haven’t experienced before. We have to start asking ourselves about the worlds we are going to live in with these very long lives.
By the end of the century there will be 1.5 million centenarians in the UK. Currently there are 14,500
‘We take it for granted that we will pass power, assets and status down the generations at regular timings. What happens when you don’t inherit from your grandparents until you’re in your eighties? What happens in our workplaces? What happens in our societies, when we have these huge long gaps?’ She added that divorce rates could rise and that ‘even the institution of marriage’ – and whether we want to stick with a partner for so many decades – needs to be thought about.
Professor Harper, who recently led a study for the Government on the effects of ageing, said robotics will be ‘very beneficial’ for helping older people stay in work, pointing out those in their 60s a generation ago would struggle to make a car but now they can sit at computers operating robots.
She also said obesity is not hitting life expectancy that much, but it is still a problem because while people won’t die much earlier, they will be disabled for longer. ‘Obesity only decreases life expectancy by 1.5 years, but it increases disabled years by six years,’ she warned. ‘That is extraordinary [and] not positive.’
n Drivers are better off using maps because satnavs overcomplicate long journeys, an expert has said.
Cardiff University academic Dr Rhyd Lewis said the devices were better for short journeys where they did not have to make assumptions about your speed or traffic.
Speaking at the festival, Dr Lewis said: ‘My advice would be to use a map to plan your overall journey.’
Share or comment on this article
- Pictured: 15-year-old girl killed after car she was…
- Democrats are ‘pushing hard’ for daytime TV host Jerry…
- Bloody Memorial Day Weekend in Chicago sees 49 shot but…
- Passenger ‘punches his drunk girlfriend as she is driving…
- ‘He was the most brilliant that I have ever known’:…
- Airbnb apologizes for ‘poor judgement’ after ad for a…
- Girl, 15, is killed when the SUV she is in slams into an…
- Ex-cop charged with shooting dead his neighbor feared…
- AK-47-wielding driver fires 108 shots from his Toyota…
- Trump says Russia must be ‘laughing’ at the U.S. after…
- USAA REINSTATES its ads on Hannity after veterans…
- Golf legend Jack Nicklaus says his friend Tiger Woods…
- Man arrested for ‘kidnapping and murdering two women…
- New York City subway ‘showtime’ dance troupe attacks…
- Trump tells Senate to force through Obamacare repeal and…
- Inspirational moment young man with Down’s syndrome…
- Revealed: How white supremacist was shot in the EYE by…
- How is the state of YOUR spelling? From ‘pneumonia’ to…
Comments 26
Share what you think
-
Newest -
Oldest -
Best rated -
Worst rated
The comments below have not been moderated.
The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline.
Close
Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual.
Close
Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual
We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook.
You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.