An extended family of Old Order Amish living in a remote Indiana community may have unlocked the key to healthier aging and a longer life, scientists at Northwestern University reported this week.

The genetic mutation discovered in the family is the first of its kind, Northwestern reported, and appears to protect carriers from diabetes and high fasting insulin levels. Indiana Amish kindred who have the mutation also live more than 10 percent longer and have 10 percent longer telomeres than those who don’t carry the gene.

The mutation also seemed to retain vascular flexibility and keep blood pressure in check, lead study author Douglas Vaughn explained.

“For the first time we are seeing a molecular marker of aging, a metabolic marker of aging and a cardiovascular marker of aging all tracking in the same direction in that these individuals were generally protected from age-related changes,” he said. “That played out in them having a longer lifespan. Not only do they live longer, they live healthier. It’s a desirable form of longevity. It’s their ‘health span.’”

Vaughn’s team is now testing an experimental drug that mimics the effects of the mutation in an effort to determine whether the genetic fluke could provide protection against aging-related illnesses.

Read the full news story here: