Secret over 100s? Intestinal flora – Wel.nl

Most people never reach 100 years old. What distinguishes these seniors from the rest? Researchers think the gut flora may have something to do with it.

study which nature It appeared, and it studied Japanese people over the age of 100, and found that these people had a certain set of gut bacteria, which may prevent infection and other risk factors.

People over the age of 100 are usually less likely to develop age-related diseases, such as diabetes and cancer. The microbiome – the billions of microorganisms in our gut – seems to have something to do with this.

We always think that longevity is written in our genes, but genes are only responsible for 30 percent of life expectancy. So there is a lot of room for environmental factors that can change, such as diet, relationships and perhaps now also gut bacteria.

The researchers found 160 Japanese with an average age of 107 years. They compared the gut microbiota with 112 elderly people in the late 1980s and 47 young adults.

The researchers, led by microbiologist Yoko Sato of Keio University in Tokyo, found that more than 100 people had different gut bacteria. Previous studies have also shown that people over the age of 100 in Sardinia have a higher diversity of bacteria in their gut than younger people.

The attractive thing about gut research is that if you can figure out what a healthy microbiome in older adults looks like, you can try to modify gut bacteria through diet, for example. studies showed that modifying the diet can lead to changes in the gut flora within a few days.