How long will I live

By Merill Haseen

What are my chances (or my children's chances) of living to 100
...asks Su Smith. Not wonderful, is the answer. Despite all the predictions, new research by Dr Jay Olshansky of the University of Chicago shows that people in Europe won't routinely live until they're 100 until the next century.

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How long will we live, then
The answer depends on where you live. France is a particularly good place to be, and has a slight edge on us. Europeans alive today can generally� look forward to celebrating their 85th birthday.

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What about all those miraculous advances in medicine
They've already made a big difference, but there are limits. Life expectancy has risen by three decades since 1900, but, according to Dr Olshansky: 'there are no 'magic potions, hormones, antioxidants, forms of genetic engineering or biomedical technologies that exist today that would permit a life expectancy of 120 or 150 years.'

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Do all age experts agree
No, Professor Steve Austad of Idaho University is an expert on ageing who believes that today's children will live to 150, even push 200. Dr Olshansky disagrees, saying that humans aren't capable of living more than 130 years, so they have taken a bet on it. They have each deposited $150 in a trust fund, to mature in 2150 (when it will be worth $500 million). If, in 2150, there exists a sentient 150-year-old, Austad will be declared the winner. The money will go to the winning scientist's heirs.

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Is there any point in living longer if we're weak and frail
Quite. Dr Olshansky's team has designed a 'superhuman', i.e. one with all our structural design flaws taken out. The result resembles an elf.

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What Slender, willowy and able to fly

No, think Hobbit: short limbs, reversed knee joints, stout neck, large bottom and curved neck. The ears are Spock-like to collect more sound, there is some rewiring in the eye to prevent blindness, more check valves in the leg veins to prevent varicose veins, and more ribs to hold organs in place.

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No point in spending a fortune on anti-ageing creams, then

Not really. And even this 'built-to-last' human doesn't guarantee living longer because it doesn't address cancer, heart disease and so on. But, if you managed to avoid them, your body would certainly stay healthier into old age.