Area Agency on Aging

In 2004, Aubrey David Nicholas Jasper de Grey (yes, that’s his real name) made a bold claim: that the first child to live to the age of 1,000 had already been born, and was 60 years old. That would make them 66 today. Obviously, this claim is not accepted everywhere, and while de Grey does have a doctorate from the University of Cambridge, not all of his theories have been widely accepted. Still, the question remains: will the expected human lifespan change drastically in the near future?De Grey is from the United Kingdom, which has an average overall life expectancy of 79.4 years old (the average for men is slightly lower and the average for women slightly higher). This is the 22^nd highest value worldwideJapan comes in first with an average expectancy of 82.6. The United States are 38^th, with an average overall life expectancy of 78.2 years. Worldwide, the average expectancy in 2009 was 66.57 years. The drastic differences are due to the high levels of HIV and AIDS in many African countries, as well as higher infant mortality rates.The U.S. Census Bureau has made its own (more modest) predictions for human aging in the next several decades. Based on current and projected scientific technology that is focused on treating the effects of aging rather than changing it completely, the Bureau predicts that life expectancy in the U.S. in 2050 will be in the mid-80s, an increase of about 8.7. By the year 2100, it predicts that there will be more than 5.3 million people in America over 100more than 27.9 over the current U.S. expectancyAs more research on aging develops, it is important not to get carried away by the future. Focus on enjoying every day to the fullest, and making your own life as rich and rewarding as possible, even into its later years.