Treating Aging as a Medical Condition Should Long Have Been a Priority

Aging kills most people in the world, and near all people in the wealthier parts of the world. It doesn't just kill, but also produces decades of declining health and capabilities, increased pain and suffering. Addressing the causes of aging, uncovering the mechanisms of aging and treating them, should have been the top priority in medicine ever since the advent of modern antibiotics allowed for control over the majority of infectious disease. Decades in which meaningful progress could have taken place have been wasted, and work on the mechanisms of aging is still only a small field within the life sciences, a small industry within the biotech space. This must change. The advent of senolytic treatments to clear senescent cells shows that rejuvenation therapies are possible and plausible, and the SENS proposals - for senolytics and more - point the way to those therapies. What is the world waiting for? The widespread improvement in global life expectancy at birth was one of the greatest achievements of the 20th Century. Today, most children born in high-income countries will live into their ninth decade, and possibly beyond. This represents a new reality for humanity. In 1816, for example, French children had a 1 in 4 chance of making it to 70 years; today life expectancy in France is higher than 4 in 5. The fact that a child born today is more likely to live to old age makes ageing well a new health priority. In fact, it's a multi-trillion dollar target. Imag...
Source: Fight Aging! - Category: Research Authors: Tags: Daily News Source Type: blogs