The transmission of longevity across generations: The case of the settler Cape Colony

Piraino, Patrizio; Muller, Seán Mfundza; Cilliers, Jeanne; Fourie, Johan

doi:10.1016/j.rssm.2013.08.005

Cited by 25 publications

(20 citation statements)

References 41 publications

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“…"Inheritance of longevity" has been discussed at length in the literature. Its precise nature is somewhat elusive (Christensen, Johnson, & Vaupel, 2006;Pal and Tyler, 2016;Piraino, Muller, Cilliers, & Fourie, 2014;Vaupel et al, 1998). Gudmundsson et al (2000), studying the entire Icelandic population, concluded that longevity was inherited within families, in their view probably because of shared genes.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Why Is Parental Lifespan Linked to Children’s Chances of Reaching a High Age? A Transgenerational Hypothesis

Vågerö¹,

Aronsson²,

Modin³

2019

Healthy Ageing and Longevity

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A B S T R A C TPurpose: Transgenerational determinants of longevity are poorly understood. We used data from four linked generations (G0, G1, G2 and G3) of the Uppsala Birth Cohort Multigeneration Study to address this issue. Methods: Mortality in G1 (N = 9565) was followed from 1961-2015 and analysed in relation to tertiles of their parents' (G0) age-at-death using Cox regression. Parental social class and marital status were adjusted for in the analyses, as was G1's birth order and adult social class. For an almost entirely deceased segment of G1 (n = 1149), born 1915-1917, we compared exact age-at-death with G0 parents' age-at-death. Finally, we explored 'resilience' as a potentially important mechanism for intergenerational transmission of longevity, using conscript information from psychological interviews of G2 and G3 men. Results: G0 men's and women's ages-at-death were independently associated with G1 midlife and old age mortality. This association was robust and minimally reduced when G0 and G1 social class were adjusted for. We observed an increased lifespan in all social groups. Median difference in age-at-death for sons compared to fathers was + 3.9 years, and + 6.9 years for daughters compared to mothers.Parents' and maternal grandmother's longevity were associated with resilience in subsequent generations. Resilience scores of G2 men were also associated with those of their G3 sons and with their own mortality in midlife. Conclusions:The chance of reaching a high age is transmitted from parents to children in a modest, but robust way. Longevity inheritance is paralleled by the inheritance of individual resilience. Individual resilience, we propose, develops in the first part of life as a response to adversity and early experience in general. This gives rise to a transgenerational pathway, distinct from social class trajectories. A theory of longevity inheritance should bring together previous thinking around general susceptibility, frailty and resilience with new insights from epigenetics and social epidemiology.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Why Is Parental Lifespan Linked to Children’s Chances of Reaching a High Age? A Transgenerational Hypothesis

Vågerö¹,

Aronsson²,

Modin³

2019

Healthy Ageing and Longevity

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show abstract

“…“Inheritance of longevity” has been discussed at length in the literature. Its precise nature is somewhat elusive ( Vaupel et al, 1998 , Christensen et al, 2006 , Pal and Tyler, 2016 , Piraino et al, 2014 ). Gudmundsson et al (2000) , studying the entire Icelandic population, concluded that longevity was inherited within families, in their view probably because of shared genes.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Why is parental lifespan linked to children's chances of reaching a high age? A transgenerational hypothesis

Vågerö

Aronsson

Modin

2018

SSM - Population Health

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PurposeTransgenerational determinants of longevity are poorly understood. We used data from four linked generations (G0, G1, G2 and G3) of the Uppsala Birth Cohort Multigeneration Study to address this issue.MethodsMortality in G1 (N = 9565) was followed from 1961–2015 and analysed in relation to tertiles of their parents’ (G0) age-at-death using Cox regression. Parental social class and marital status were adjusted for in the analyses, as was G1’s birth order and adult social class. For an almost entirely deceased segment of G1 (n = 1149), born 1915–1917, we compared exact age-at-death with G0 parents’ age-at-death. Finally, we explored ‘resilience’ as a potentially important mechanism for intergenerational transmission of longevity, using conscript information from psychological interviews of G2 and G3 men.ResultsG0 men’s and women’s ages-at-death were independently associated with G1 midlife and old age mortality. This association was robust and minimally reduced when G0 and G1 social class were adjusted for. We observed an increased lifespan in all social groups. Median difference in age-at-death for sons compared to fathers was + 3.9 years, and + 6.9 years for daughters compared to mothers.Parents’ and maternal grandmother’s longevity were associated with resilience in subsequent generations. Resilience scores of G2 men were also associated with those of their G3 sons and with their own mortality in midlife.ConclusionsThe chance of reaching a high age is transmitted from parents to children in a modest, but robust way. Longevity inheritance is paralleled by the inheritance of individual resilience. Individual resilience, we propose, develops in the first part of life as a response to adversity and early experience in general. This gives rise to a transgenerational pathway, distinct from social class trajectories. A theory of longevity inheritance should bring together previous thinking around general susceptibility, frailty and resilience with new insights from epigenetics and social epidemiology.

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“…In earlier studies, stronger maternal lifespan and longevity effects on offspring survival were found (Bocquet-Appel & Jakobi, 1990;Kemkes-Grottenthaler, 2004;Kerber et al, 2001;Piraino et al, 2014;Salaris, Tedesco & Poulain, 2013;Westendorp & Kirkwood, 2001). These studies offered possible explanations of longevity being transmitted by mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) since offspring obtain mtDNA only through mothers .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 88%

Intergenerational transmission of longevity is not affected by other familial factors: Evidence from 16,905 Dutch families from Zeeland, 1812-1962

Mourits

Berg

Rodríguez-Girondo

et al. 2019

Preprint

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Studies have shown that long-lived individuals seem to pass their survival advantage on to their offspring. Offspring of long-lived parents had a lifelong survival advantage over individuals without long-lived parents, making them more likely to become long-lived themselves. We test whether the survival advantage enjoyed by offspring of long-lived individuals is explained by environmental factors. 101,577 individuals from 16,905 families in the 1812-1886 Zeeland cohort were followed over time.To prevent that certain families were overrepresented in our data, disjoint family trees were selected. Offspring was included if the age at death of both parents was known. Our analyses show that multiple familial resources are associated with survival within the first 5 years of life, with stronger maternal than paternal effects. However, between ages 5 and 100 both parents contribute equally to offspring's survival chances. After age 5, offspring of long-lived fathers and long-lived mothers had a 16-19% lower chance of dying at any given point in time than individuals without long-lived parents. This survival advantage is most likely genetic in nature, as it could not be explained by other, tested familial resources and is transmitted equally by fathers and mothers.

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The transmission of longevity across generations: The case of the settler Cape Colony

Cited by 25 publications

References 41 publications

Why Is Parental Lifespan Linked to Children’s Chances of Reaching a High Age? A Transgenerational Hypothesis

Why Is Parental Lifespan Linked to Children’s Chances of Reaching a High Age? A Transgenerational Hypothesis

Why is parental lifespan linked to children's chances of reaching a high age? A transgenerational hypothesis

Intergenerational transmission of longevity is not affected by other familial factors: Evidence from 16,905 Dutch families from Zeeland, 1812-1962

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