Earning More Time:
The New Science of Ageing

We cannot buy time. But science now shows we can earn it.

Not by chasing immortality, but by making daily investments that add years of vitality, connection and purpose to our lives.

Rethinking Ageing

We often imagine ageing as an unstoppable slide from health into frailty.

Professor Andrea Maier, Oon Chiew Seng Professor of Medicine and Co-Director of Centre for Healthy Longevity, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, reminds us it doesn’t have to be this way, in her keynote entitled “A Global Perspective on Precision Geromedicine”, which she delivered during the Orientation of the inaugural Distinguished Senior Fellowship Programme (DSFP) on 20 August 2025.

Ageing is not a cliff we suddenly fall from, but a slope we can learn to descend more slowly, with strength and dignity.

The Biology Beneath the Surface

From our 20s, cells begin to accumulate damage.

Mitochondria weaken, proteins misfold, and ‘zombie cells’ linger, spreading dysfunction. Doctors can already read these signs in subtle ways — a handshake, skin tone or nail quality. These signals show us risk and resilience long before disease strikes.

Lifespan vs Healthspan

Medical progress has extended lifespan.

Yet, by 60, most of us already live with multiple chronic conditions. The real challenge is to extend healthspan — the years lived with vitality and purpose, free of frailty.

Genes, Behaviour, and Choice

Genes load the gun, but lifestyle pulls the trigger.

Studies show identical twins can differ by up to eight years in biological age depending on diet, exercise, sleep and habits. Our daily choices matter more than DNA.

Food, Sleep and the Microbiome

Prof Maier shared simple but powerful steps that can help us earn time:

• Prioritise sleep to recharge cellular ‘engines’.
• Aim for 1.2g of protein per kilo of body weight daily to protect muscle.
• Feed your gut microbiome with fibre and variety.
• Manage glucose spikes through food sequence and balance.

She also cautioned that supplements may promise miracles, but evidence is thin. Real gains come from consistent nutrition, rest and movement.

The Technology Edge

Wearables and digital health tools now let us track glucose, sleep, and cognition in real time. Used wisely, they act as early warning systems, offering a ten-year forecast that helps us change course today.

Beyond Biology: Ethics and Equity

Not all advances in geroscience will be equally accessible. Prof Maier warns that the promise of longevity must not deepen inequality. Geromedicine must be about democratisation, not just innovation.

The Ritual of Investment

Every decision we make — what we eat, how we move, when we rest, the relationships we nurture — is a deposit in the bank of future vitality.

Unlike financial markets, the returns here are guaranteed.

Closing

We cannot stop the sand from flowing through the hourglass. But we can change the way it falls.

The new science of ageing hands us the tools to live not just longer but stronger, to truly thrive in the 100-year life.