Ways to live for 100 years ⏲️ 6 Minute English

261,639 views ・ 2023-10-26

BBC Learning English


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Hello. This is 6 Minute.
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English from BBC Learning English.
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I'm Neil. And I'm Beth.
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How old are you, Beth?
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That's a very personal question, Neil!
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Sorry. I didn't mean to be rude.
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Anyway, at least you're not a centenarian -
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someone who's lived to be a hundred years old.
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Are you saying I look a hundred?
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That's even ruder! Sorry, Beth.
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No, it's just that,
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with advances in modern medicine,
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people are living longer and longer.
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There was a time when living to 100 seemed impossible.
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But in 2021,
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The United Nations Population Division estimated there to be
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over half a million centenarians worldwide
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and that number is set to rise.
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So, how do you live to 100? And what could life be like
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in your twilight years?
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A phrase meaning your old age or the last years of your life.
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That's what we'll be discussing in this programme and of course,
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we'll be learning some useful new vocabulary, too.
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But first, I have a question for you, Beth.
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In 2022
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The world's oldest certified person died aged 119,
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but which country was she from? Was it:
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a) Switzerland b) Italy or c) Japan.
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Hmm, I think the answer is Japan.
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OK Beth, we'll find out the answer
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at the end of the programme. Of all the many factors for long life,
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such as diet, exercise and keeping active, human relationships are among
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the most important. People
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who are more connected with others and have warmer relationships, live longer
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and stay healthier, and according to psychiatrist Robert Waldinger,
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talking here with the BBC
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World Service Programme
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'The Inquiry', those relationships don't necessarily have to be with humans.
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Introverts actually find having a lot of people around stressful,
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so they might only need one or two close people and that's all they need,
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that's all they want. And that's just fine for them.
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So, one size doesn't fit all
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when it comes to how many relationships
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you need to have a healthy life.
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It doesn't have to be done with another human.
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We know that pets provide us with a great deal of comfort and joy
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and pets can calm us down.
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Whether you're a shy introvert or noisy extrovert,
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what counts is friendship,
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be that with a human or a pet. Different things work for different people.
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So, Dr Waldinger
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says it's not 'one size fits all' - a phrase meaning something which is suitable
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for everyone or every purpose.
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So far, we've mentioned the importance of diet, exercise and friendship.
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But some people want more radical ways of defying death
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and staying young. Dr Nir Barzilai
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director of the American Federation for Ageing Research
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has developed three scenarios in his work with centenarians in the US.
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The first scenario, called Dorian Gray
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after the fictional character who didn't age
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involves delaying the ageing process.
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Here's doctor Barzilai explaining more to BBC
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World Service Programme. 'The Inquiry'.
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The second scenario is what we call the 'wolverine'
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or the 'fountain of youth' taking old people and make them young.
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This is very, very hard.
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This will be the most complex things we can do.
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And the third scenario,
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and this is a very exciting scenario,
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and we have some evidence that it works, is the 'Peter Pan' scenario.
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Peter Pan, didn't grow old - the idea that you'll take people
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when they're 20 or 30 and give them a treatment
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every few months or every year and you'll basically erase their ageing
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and let them age
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very, very slowly, which also will mean, probably.
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that they'll pass their 115 year,
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maximum potential lifespan.
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All Dr Barzilai's treatments are aimed at extending lifespan, the length
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of time someone is normally expected to live. His second treatment,
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making someone who is old,
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younger, is called 'the fountain of youth', a legendary source
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of magical water that keeps
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anyone who drinks it, young forever.  
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Doctor Barzilai's third treatment involves slowing down the ageing process
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so much that people hardly age at all. This treatment is called Peter Pan
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after the fictional boy who never grew up and is connected to another idiom,
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'Peter Pan Syndrome',
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which describes an immature person who has reached adulthood,
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but refuses to take on adult responsibilities.
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But which country was the certified oldest person in the world
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from? That was your question, Neil and I guessed Japan. But was I right?
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You were... correct!
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Kane Tanaka, was born on the Japanese island of Kyushu.
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She lived to 119, the oldest human ever recorded,
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and her secret? Playing chess eating chocolate and drinking coffee!
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OK, let's recap the vocabulary
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we have learned from this programme about 'centenarians'
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- people aged 100 years or more.
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Your 'twilight years' are your old age.
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The phrase 'one size fits all' means suitable for everyone or every purpose.
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A 'lifespan' is the length of time someone is normally expected to live.
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The legendary 'fountain of youth' produces magical water,
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so that anyone who drinks
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it lives forever.
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And finally, the phrase
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'Peter Pan syndrome' describes an adult who refuses to grow up. Once again,
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Our 6 minutes are up.
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Join us again soon for more useful vocabulary here at 6 minute
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06:04
English. Goodbye for now. Bye!
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