Zoomer Report

A team of researchers from Duke University studied a nearly 1000 people born within a year of each other and found a huge gulf in the speed at which their bodies aged. The subjects were from the same town in New Zealand and were all born in 1972-73. The scientists looked at 18 different ageing-related traits when the group turned 26, 32 and 38 years old. They measured everything from kidney and liver function to cardiovascular fitness and the condition of their gums.

A study suggests that end-of-life chemotherapy is more likely to make things worse. The work in JAMA Oncology followed more than 300 patients with a prognosis of less than six months to live. About half opted for end-stage chemotherapy.

According to Swedish researchers. Exposure to noise from traffic, trains, planes and maybe even deafening restaurants could be linked to a burgeoning belly.

The study in Occupational & Environmental Medicine followed 5000 people around Stockholm for four years. It found that women had a 0.08-inch increase in waist size for every additional 5 decibels in noise exposure. For men the increase was .06 inches. And the risk of a larger waist rose with the number of sources of noise someone was exposed to at the same time.

Starting formal musical training at a young age may be instrumental in preventing or delaying some types of cognitive decline in later years. A Canadian study led by scientists at the Rotman Research Institute at Baycrest has found that older adults who had musical training when they were young we're able to identify speech sounds 20% faster than their peers with a non-musical background. That means they were less likely to lose speech listening functions that weaken with age such as speech comprehension. The researchers separated healthy older adults aged 55 to 75 into groups of non-musicians and musicians who had at least 10 years of training in their younger years and were still playing.

Ben Franklin once famously said that people who are early to bed and early to rise, are healthy, wealthy, and wise. Now you can add “happy” to that list: Early risers are more likely to feel chipper and energetic than late sleepers, according to research from the University of Toronto.

Men are less likely than women to reach that milestone, but according to a study out of London, those who do tend to be healthier than their female peers.

The British researchers found that women are now four times more likely than men to hit 100. But they are more likely to suffer broken bones or develop more than one chronic health problem, such as incontinence or loss of vision or hearing. Men had fewer chronic ailments. All of the centenarians were more likely to have chronic, nonfatal issues such as arthritis rather than more serious diseases like cancer or diabetes. And the study authors say they found a surprising number of 100-year-olds who had no major illnesses.

For many, if not most couples who have been together for a long time, things can get a little dull in the bedroom. Now a study says that after around 50 years of marriage, your sex life could pick up again thanks to a renewed sense of trust and commitment.

Researchers at Louisiana State university analyzed the sex lives of over 1,600 adults from their late-50s all the way to their mid-80s. They noticed a slight "rebound" in how often long-married couples were having sex once they had surpassed 50 years of marriage.

A study out of Norway finds that older men doing three hours of exercise a week lived around five years longer than those who were sedentary.

The research tracked 5700 men aged tracking 68 to 77. It found that those putting in the equivalent of six, 30-minute sessions of any intensity, were 40% less likely to have died during the 11-year study. While those who carried out vigorous exercise saw the highest benefits, even light intensity activity lowered mortality risk – However, anything less than an hour a week of light exercise had no impact.

Are you a foodie? It means you’re passionate about food and love trying new dishes. Many people think those of us who fit this description are indulgent and gluttonous, let along pretentious. But a study from the famous Cornell Food and Brand Lab suggests the opposite: Foodies weigh less and could be in better health than the less discerning among us

Is your event or training in sync with your body clock? British researchers found that early risers had their peak performances at mid day. Intermediate risers, people who got up around eight, did best in the afternoon and the late risers did best in the evening. Everyone did the worst at 7:00 AM.