The longevity It is one of the most studied issues throughout history by historians, economic and researchers, with the aim of finding the secrets to live more years. The factors that influence life expectancy are multiple, but a Revolutionary study, Published this month, it has revealed an important secret.
Innovative research, under the title ‘The economy, the ghost in your gene and the flight of premature mortality’ and Published by the German Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)has revealed that the secret of longevity might not be so much in our present, but in our past.
Specifically, the longevity key is in The diet and living conditions of our paternal grandparents. According to this investigation, the variability in the crops and food crises experienced by grandparents in their youth significantly influence the life expectancy of their grandchildren.
The influence of food stability of past generations
The study, conducted by a group of researchers led by Dora L. Costa and Lars Olov Bygren, among others, is based on historical records of Swedenwhere data on crops and mortality were found throughout several generations.
Specifically, records date from between 1830 and 1909, A time when agricultural productivity increased significantly thanks to changes such as the elimination of commercial barriers or transport improvements.
The researchers discovered that grandparents’ grandchildren who faced extreme changes in the crops in their childhood, Specifically, between 9 and 12 years, a key stage for their development had a lower life expectancy.
In addition, these findings presented differences between genres. And it is the male grandchildren They showed a clear relationship between crop oscillations of paternal grandparents and longevity, but in the case of women, there were no significant evidence.
«We found that the grandparents of grandparents who faced extreme oscillations in the crops lived shorter lives, especially if these events occurred in a Low agricultural productivity context and little integrated markets, ”says researcher Dora L. Costa.
The study also underlines the importance of Food stability in our life expectancy. And, before innovations were introduced in agricultural production, the crops were very variable, with periods of abundance and crisis.
However, after agricultural modernization, this variability decreased. «Food stability not only increased the longevity of people at that time, but also He laid the foundations for healthier generations», Says Costa in the study, which points to how economic growth can positively influence the health of future generations.
The root, in epigenetics
The study attributes the results of your research to epigenetic mechanismsthat is, to inheritable changes in the genetic expression caused by environmental factors. In this way, grandparents who, during the years of agricultural growth, suffered food shortage would have transmitted to their descendants genetic “marks” that influence their longevity.
«This finding Change our way of thinking about health and longevityshowing that the decisions and contexts of our ancestors can have long -range effects in our lives, ”explains Dora L. Costa.
A look to the future
Beyond the importance of this study in the understanding of one of the keys behind longevity, it is vital to understand the implications it can have in the current policies on public health.
And, in addition to being aware of how individual factors such as eating habits or exercise, problems such as food variability and Environmental crises derived from climate change, which could affect the health of future generations.
«When we talk about longevity, we cannot just look at what we do today. We must also consider the legacy of our ancestors and how the decisions we make now can impact our descendants»The researchers conclude.
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