Fancy living to 100? You're in luck: it's no longer (entirely) outside the realms of possibility. Human lifespan has more than doubled in the last century, thanks in large part to advances in knowledge, living standards and healthcare. For the most part, though, many people in the UK still live their final decades in declining health: according to research conducted by the charity The Health Foundation, healthy life expectancy has, in fact, fallen over the past decade, with over 90% of areas having a healthy life expectancy of below 66 years.
This is where longevity gets interesting: while we know that genetics plays a crucial role in determining lifespan, what we're now learning is that how we're living has a huge influence, too. Enter the buzzword of the decade: healthspan.
