group Annui TY proJeCTion sCALes
Male
Age
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
SOURCE: aUThOR
C
1.25%
1.25%
1.25%
1.25%
1.25%
0.67%
0.00%
0.00%
d
0.65%
0.65%
0.65%
0.65%
0.56%
0.36%
0.16%
0.00%
h
0.75%
2.00%
1.75%
1.50%
1.50%
1.25%
0.75%
0.00%
AA
0.50%
0.80%
1.80%
1.60%
1.50%
1.00%
0.40%
0.00%
female
Age
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
C
1.25%
1.25%
1.25%
1.25%
1.25%
0.67%
0.00%
0.00%
d
1.30%
1.30%
1.30%
1.30%
1.21%
0.92%
0.38%
0.00%
h
1.25%
2.25%
2.00%
1.75%
1.75%
1.50%
1.00%
0.00%
AA
1.00%
1.50%
1.70%
0.50%
0.50%
0.70%
0.30%
0.00%
ChArt 2:
Male projected Mortality to 1994
Age gA51(C) 71gAM(d) 83gAM(h)
40 0.001080 0.001352 0.000878
50 0.003496 0.004374 0.002895
60 0.008398 0.010859 0.007083
70 0.021220 0.030680 0.022230
80 0.071822 0.078749 0.059810
SOURCE: aUThOR
1994
gAM
0.001153
0.002773
0.008576
0.025516
0.066696
2000 u.s.
population
0.002581
0.005687
0.013033
0.030827
0.071426
gA51C/
94gAM
0.94
1. 26
0.98
0.83
1.08
71gAMd/
94gAM
1. 17
1. 58
1. 27
1. 20
1. 18
83gAMh/
94gAM
0.76
1.04
0.83
0.87
0.90
dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), melatonin, and thyroid as
they naturally decline with age. Supplementing testosterone,
HGH, and estrogen has each been shown to temporarily halt
certain effects of aging. None, however, has been proven to
increase longevity, and to the extent they increase cancer risk,
they may have the opposite effect.
■ ■ suppLeMen Ts—These include vitamins A through E, K,
CoQ10, TA- 65 (astragalus), fish oil, curcumin, herbal remedies,
fruit juices, and other food-based antioxidants. Claims are made
that these supplements can prevent or cure certain diseases or
conditions or boost the immune system. To the extent that they
cure or prevent age-related diseases, they could increase longevity. Most of these claims have not been subjected to rigorous
scientific testing in humans, and, to the extent that they have, the
results have been mixed. The exception is resveratrol, which is
thought to be the source of the healthy benefits of wine.
Cosmetic procedures—such as facelifts, liposuction, and Bo-tox injections—that have no effect on longevity sometimes are
considered part of anti-aging medicine. To increase longevity,
effective interventions would need to be adopted by many in
the population, which seems unlikely. Even if that were to happen, the mortality improvement would be gradual and fit within
the actuarial model. One result could be greater discrepancy
between population and annuitant data, in cases in which an-nuitization is voluntary.
resveratrol and Caloric restriction
Caloric restriction without malnutrition has been shown to increase significantly both average and maximum life spans in
laboratory rodents and other short-lived animals. Human studies have shown that caloric restriction greatly improves health,
postpones age-related diseases, and increases life expectancy.
But there is no evidence that it increases maximum life span. A
six-month control study and data from the Calorie Restriction
Society show significant improvement in blood pressure and
blood chemistries, when compared with control groups, as well
as the levels of those in the study before starting to restrict calories. Studies of centenarians in Okinawa, Japan, whose diets
were close to caloric restriction diets, show that more reached
age 100 than in any other society, but there was no increase in
maximum life span—they did not live longer than centenarians
living elsewhere.
A study of long-term caloric restriction in adult rhesus monkeys, begun in 1989, has reached the average life expectancy of
these animals. Half the control group has died, compared with
20 percent of those eating a calorie-restricted diet. The calorie-restricted group is healthier both in appearance and when
metabolic, cardiovascular, and brain functions are measured.
Deaths from cardiovascular disease and cancer are 50 percent
lower for the calorie-restricted group, and diabetes is nonexistent in the calorie-restricted group, while 42 percent of the
