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Life expectancy is slowing down as we reach the end of a ‘longevity revolution’. The next step is to slow the ageing process, but how possible is that?

The sharp rise in life expectancy over the past century is finally slowing down – and will stop when the average life expectancy reaches 87 – according to a new study of expected lifespans between 1990 and 2019.

The study, published last week in Nature Aging, by gerontologist Jay Olshansky and several co-authors, found that the rise in life expectancy during the 20th century has slowed down markedly over the past 30 years.

It looked at data on life expectancy at birth collected between 1990 and 2019 from the eight countries with the highest life expectancies – Australia, France, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland. It also examined lifespans in Hong Kong and the United States.

The new study follows on from research that Olshansky, now professor of epidemiology and biostatistics at the School of Public Health, University of Illinois in Chicago, undertook before 1990. The average life expectancy for the world as a whole is currently 72.

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