Longevity researcher: ‘You play on people’s fear of growing old’

Mrs Röcke, a lot of private money is flowing into longevity research all over the world. Will we eventually be able to stop aging and even rejuvenate the body?
I find this a difficult subject. Given the change in life expectancy and the way we deal with illness, many people could eventually live to be a hundred years old or even older. Biologically speaking, however, the limit of what is possible is reached around 120 years.

But there are also people in the longevity industry who want to live to be 1,000 years or older.
This is wishful thinking. There is no empirical evidence that life expectancy can increase significantly beyond 120 years. I know there are some voices advocating for successful animal testing, but there is no way these results can yet be transferred to humans; the relevant data is simply missing.

Nevertheless, longevity is increasingly becoming a successful business model. Also in Switzerland, as Tobias Reichmuth does.
What I find critical about these business models is that they are mainly used to make money and argue on a vague scientific basis. The private offers that exist are often expensive and for an exclusive part of society. These are offers that respond to people’s fear of growing old. It is claimed that the life expectancy of a single person improves significantly by, for example, taking new nutritional supplements. But the data for this is also lacking.

It is often said that aging also brings diseases.
Yes, but that is a very one-sided view of aging, which also ignores mental health and psychological aging. Most elderly people are doing well, especially in terms of their well-being. Many are satisfied and productive despite physical changes. If you try to stop aging from morning to night, a lot of life is lost. Time that can be spent with family or loved ones, or learning something new: these are activities for which we have good empirical data and that have a positive impact on people’s health. A positive image of aging also has a life-prolonging effect. You have to look at age and aging holistically.

Is aging a disease?
Christina Skirts: No, growing older is not a disease, but a very complex process with gains and losses. Many processes, including cell aging, can have positive effects. For example, that tumor growth is stopped. This means that even at the cellular level, aging is not all negative.

Why does the body change as we age?
During the biological aging process, a lot happens at the cellular level. We know that certain cell repair processes slow down. This increases the risk of certain diseases. But we should note: this is very individual, so interventions must be tailored to each person and their life context.

You work at the University of Zurich at the Healthy Longevity Center, where research is conducted into ‘healthy aging’. What does that mean?
We look at how we can promote and maintain quality of life into old age, even if certain resources are lost or reduced. Healthy aging means something different for every person. We investigate what is important for personal well-being in a certain life situation and how you can maintain your health. And there is also positive news.

For example?
For example, older people are increasingly satisfied with their social relationships, report a high level of well-being and choose goals in such a way that they are well aligned. Overall, we see that the majority of older people can cope well with age-related changes. No one is defined solely by his or her illness; rather, it is a person with many characteristics. Therefore, the goal cannot be to constantly focus on how to prevent something, how to prevent aging, but rather how to use your resources in the best possible way – and how we as a society make good aging possible here.