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The Mysterious Aging of Astronauts

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Re: The Mysterious Aging of Astronauts

#21

Post by LordKano »

Maybe it's attributed to the rigorousness of the selection process but I have noticed the longevity of so many astronauts.

John Glenn, Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, Michael Collins and Edgar Mitchell all lived beyond the average life expectancy of American males born when they were born.

Our bodies have incredibly complex feedback loops and we evolved here, with a constant 1G of gravity.

It's not surprising to me that exposure to Zero-G can have long lasting and unexpected consequences.

Re: The Mysterious Aging of Astronauts

#22

Post by caio1982 »

dennisnedry wrote: post #2

Perhaps there needs to be more studies done on the effect of gravity and human health? Conversely, are there other things in our air (pollutants) that are in fact causing slower aging when on Earth?

Well, as to your first question, that's exactly the purpose of https://www.nasa.gov/content/one-year-crew

Re: The Mysterious Aging of Astronauts

#23

Post by Retric »

LordKano wrote: post #21

Maybe it's attributed to the rigorousness of the selection process but I have noticed the longevity of so many astronauts. John Glenn, Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, Michael Collins and Edgar Mitchell all lived beyond the average life expectancy of American males born when they were born. Our bodies have incredibly complex feedback loops and we evolved here, with a constant 1G of gravity. It's not surprising to me that…

Selection bias. Life expectancy at birth has little impact when astronauts are all selected much latter in life.

At the extreme edge, the average age of people in nursing homes is much older than life expectancy at birth. That does not mean nursing homes are good for you.

Re: The Mysterious Aging of Astronauts

#24

Post by [deleted] »

bdamm wrote: post #19
toomuchtodo wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They're not aging at an accelerated rate, they're exhibiting similar symptoms of aging from their microgravity environment (weak muscles, frail bones) and from there being no shielding from cosmic rays (cataracts).

Perhaps we could conclude that cosmic rays cause increased rate of aging. Actually, it seems pretty obvious really, that a body healing itself from radiation damage would "age" more quickly. Doesn't every cell division increase the cost of further cell divisions through mutations? And isn't there actually a mechanism to ultimately shut down cell division i.e. Telomere breakdown?

[deleted]

Re: The Mysterious Aging of Astronauts

#25

Post by LordKano »

Retric wrote: post #23
LordKano wrote: post #21

Maybe it's attributed to the rigorousness of the selection process but I have noticed the longevity of so many astronauts. John Glenn, Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, Michael Collins and Edgar Mitchell all lived beyond the average life expectancy of American males born when they were born. Our bodies have incredibly complex feedback loops and we evolved here, with a constant 1G of gravity. It's not surprising to me that…

Selection bias. Life expectancy at birth has little impact when astronauts are all selected much latter in life. At the extreme edge, the average age of people in nursing homes is much older than life expectancy at birth. That does not mean nursing homes are good for you.

I certainly concede the possibility.

People who are healthiest in their mid to late 30s being more likely to live into old age than those who are not is a plausible explanation for what I have observed.

Re: The Mysterious Aging of Astronauts

#26

Post by Retric »

LordKano wrote: post #25
Retric wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Selection bias. Life expectancy at birth has little impact when astronauts are all selected much latter in life. At the extreme edge, the average age of people in nursing homes is much older than life expectancy at birth. That does not mean nursing homes are good for you.

I certainly concede the possibility. People who are healthiest in their mid to late 30s being more likely to live into old age than those who are not is a plausible explanation for what I have observed.

I think we are talking past each other. People who are alive at 30 can't die at 5, but people at birth could die at 5. So, just by being 30+ or 60+ a populations life expectancy increases. Which is why actuarial tables include ages.

So, to see if Astronauts are living unusually longer than other people you need to look at life expectancy's of people who where 30 around 1960's.

Now, they might sill be living longer than that group. But, it does not seem like that's the comparison your making.

Re: The Mysterious Aging of Astronauts

#27

Post by ceejayoz »

LordKano wrote: post #21

Maybe it's attributed to the rigorousness of the selection process but I have noticed the longevity of so many astronauts. John Glenn, Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, Michael Collins and Edgar Mitchell all lived beyond the average life expectancy of American males born when they were born. Our bodies have incredibly complex feedback loops and we evolved here, with a constant 1G of gravity. It's not surprising to me that…

> John Glenn, Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, Michael Collins and Edgar Mitchell all lived beyond the average life expectancy of American males born when they were born.

I'd imagine astronauts are more likely than the overall population to have good healthcare, good pensions, etc. Helps live longer.

Re: The Mysterious Aging of Astronauts

#29

Post by nilkn »

Retric wrote: post #26
LordKano wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I certainly concede the possibility. People who are healthiest in their mid to late 30s being more likely to live into old age than those who are not is a plausible explanation for what I have observed.

I think we are talking past each other. People who are alive at 30 can't die at 5, but people at birth could die at 5. So, just by being 30+ or 60+ a populations life expectancy increases. Which is why actuarial tables include ages. So, to see if Astronauts are living unusually longer than other people you need to look at life expectancy's of people who where 30 around 1960's. Now, they might sill be living longer th…

https://www.ssa.gov/oact/STATS/table4c6.html

This suggests a life expectancy of ~78 years old for someone 30 years old today. Of course, as you stated, we'd really need statistics for someone who was 30 years old in the 60s.

John Glenn, Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, Michael Collins and Edgar Mitchell are all at least several years beyond 78, with Glenn at an impressive 94.

By the way, the life expectancy at birth in that table is 76, so evidently reaching age 30 doesn't actually count for as much as I thought it would.

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