Costa News Spain Breaking News | English News in Spain.
SPANISH researchers claim to have found the REAL key to long-term health after studying DNA of a 117-year old.
Researchers from Barcelona University studied the microbiome of Spain’s oldest individual to discover the secret to long life.
Maria Branyas, who passed away last year at 117-years-old reportedly had the ‘microbiome of a child’ and ‘a privileged genome’, allowing her to live until such an old age.
According to genetics professor Manel Esteller, she inherited genes which made her cells to ‘act younger’, cutting her biological age by 17 years.
Combining this with a healthy Microbiome protected her against illnesses and decreased intestinal inflammation.
Branyas’ daughter, cited this as the reason for her old age, saying ‘she’s lived so long because she’s never been ill.’
When she died, the Girona resident was just beginning to lose her memory, hearing and eyesight. She had survived Covid-19 and only recently begun to experience this pandemic.
Lucile Randon, a French centenarian who died in 2023, was the oldest person alive at the time. Branyas, the oldest Spaniard in history, is still alive today.
Esteller hopes that her findings will help to advance anti-aging medicine and give insight into the foods which promote prebiotics, which are linked to longevity.
Researchers carried out an in depth analysis of Branyas’ tissues, finding she had a superb lipid profile, with HDL (good) cholesterol and low LDL (bad) cholesterol.
Her blood sugar was also exceptionally well controlled, which means she was less susceptible to developing diseases such as Diabetes.
Branyas possessed a perfect balance of autoimmune immunity, minimal inflammation as well as crucial proteins that are essential for cellular function.
She led a healthy lifestyle as well, eating three yoghurts per day and following a Mediterranean Diet. This may have contributed to the health of her microbiome.
Branyas loved to walk, he did not smoke or drink alcohol and he was often surrounded by his family.
Esteller’s research, the most comprehensive study to date of a supercentenarian, is a milestone in our understanding of how we can not only live longer but also healthier.
