Blood type, while fixed from birth, may have a minor influence as well. Certain types could slightly affect disease risk or clotting, but they don’t determine whether someone lives to 100. The story of longevity is far more complex than one gene or one blood type alone.
Modig notes: “The study does not allow conclusions about which lifestyle factors or genes are responsible for the biomarker values. However, it is reasonable to think that factors such as nutrition and alcohol intake play a role. Keeping track of your kidney and liver values, as well as glucose and uric acid as you get older, is probably not a bad idea.”
She adds: “That said, chance probably plays a role at some point in reaching an exceptional age. But the fact that differences in biomarkers could be observed a long time before death suggests that genes and lifestyle may also play a role.”
