No evidence for limit on human lifespan: Study

Toronto, July 1: Challenging theories that say human lifespan is approaching a limit, researchers have found that there is no evidence that maximum human lifespan has stopped increasing and could instead far exceed previous predictions.

In a previous study researchers concluded that the upper limit of human age is peaking at around 115 years.

However, the new study, published in the journal Nature, finds no evidence for such a limit.

"If such a maximum exists, it has yet to be reached or identified," said Siegfried Hekimi biologists at the McGill University in Canada.

"We just don't know what the age limit might be. In fact, by extending trend lines, we can show that maximum and average lifespans, could continue to increase far into the foreseeable future," Hekimi added.

Although some scientists argue that technology, medical interventions, and improvements in living conditions could all push back the upper limit.

It's impossible to predict what future lifespans in humans might look like, Hekimi noted.

"It's hard to guess. Three hundred years ago, many people lived only short lives. If we would have told them that one day most humans might live up to 100, they would have said we were crazy," Hekimi said.