ODENSE, DENMARK — Aging and death can be uncomfortable topics for many people to talk about, especially as they grow older. While scientists have developed several ways to slow the aging process, a new study finds immortality is (not surprisingly) out of reach. An international team says, no matter how hard we try, every species on Earth has a generally fixed rate of aging that science can’t stop.

“Human death is inevitable. No matter how many vitamins we take, how healthy our environment is or how much we exercise, we will eventually age and die,” says Fernando Colchero from the University of Southern Denmark in a release.

Aging vs. life expectancy

Colchero and his team applied statistics and mathematics to information on populations and life expectancy throughout history. Their findings reveal, although people live longer today than they did in the distant past, the rate of aging among humans really isn’t changing all that much. Simply put, researchers believe today’s life expectancy has less to do with people growing older and more to […]