A cardiologist who studies the "super-elderly" identifies the only habit that guarantees to live many years and in good health: "It is the only thing that reduces our biological clock"

After analysing the factors shared by the "super-elderly", the renowned cardiologist Eric Topol concludes that longevity depends, above all, on a daily habit.

By Fede Sáenz

Infobae, 03-06-2025

Spanish Original. Translated by Revista ARIEL

Eric Topol, American cardiologist and geneticist (Video capture)

Eric Topol, American cardiologist and geneticist (Video capture)

Dr. Eric Topol, an American cardiologist and geneticist, has been researching the secrets of longevity for decades. His recent book, Super Agers: An Evidence-based Approach to Longevity, compiles the results of years of analysis of people over 80 while maintaining health and vitality. The publication has not yet been published in Spanish, but it has already generated debate in specialized forums and in the media around the world.

At 70 years old,Topol delve into the Genetic and environmental factors that allow some people to live beyond eight decades in optimal conditions. As he shared in The Mel Robbins Podcast, "physical activity is the only habit of life that shows a concrete effect on aging of the body. Other factors, such as diet and social relationships, are also important. But physical activity seems crucial to me," he says. Combating sedentary life thus stands as the basic instruction that underline the cardiologist.

Few are the people who manage to cross the barrier of 90 staying active and in good shape. Far from unattainable secrets or magic formulas, Topol argues that the key is "closer than we think" and is committed to simple routines. In his professional career - he is recognized as one of the ten leading world experts in longevity, the doctor affirms that small daily changes can prevent diseases that lead the global mortality: cancer, heart disease and neurodegenerative disorders. Sport is "the only thing we know that reduces our biological clock"

"We know that these diseases take at least 20 years to develop, so we are in a position to prevent them, especially in people at higher risk," he says. "We have an opportunity to avoid those pathologies that arise with age." For the specialist, modifying certain habits does not involve excessive effort: "It is not about pills or magic tricks. We can work with what is already in our hands."

Exercise - according to Topol - stands out above the rest of the recommendations. It is enough to observe how the daily routine is structured  and propose simple changes in movement, diet and leisure to put long-term health on track. The cardiologist especially recommends  those activities aimed at working the muscles in resistance and grip strength exercises (the ability that a person has to squeeze or suspend objects in the air with their hands), two practices that have shown remarkable effectiveness against physical deterioration linked to the passage of time.

He also attributes benefits to exercise against disorders such as depression or inflammatory diseases. "It's fabulous. This has been talked about for years, but now we have entered the era of biological clocks, which allows us to observe how we really age," says Topol. "The discovery of epigenetics has made it possible to establish what we know as 'biological age', different from chronological age."

"It turns out that exercise is the only thing we know that slows down our biological clock. The gap between your true age and biological age can be widened," Topol points out. The standard recommendation is to do 30 minutes of exercise, five days a week, although the cardiologist himself acknowledges that even two sessions a week already reap benefits. "It's not about getting stronger, it's also about improving your balance," he insists. "Nothing we can talk about beats exercise when it comes to reducing our aging process. We wouldn't know if there wasn't all that science behind it."

Topol stresses that exercise has been revealed as the most effective habit to improve health and prolong life. For those looking for a clue to the longevity of the so-called "super-elderly," the message is clear: moving not only lengthens the years, but also fills them with health and vitality.