The secret of longevity may lie in long-lived smokers, a ‘biologically distinct’ group

Jeanne Calment, the French doyenne believed to be oldest person in the world when she died at the extreme age of 122, was known for three things: her quick wit, her fondness for bicycling around the small city where she grew up - and the fact that she was a daily smoker.

Before her death in 1997, Calment was often asked the secret to her good health. She would respond with a laugh and describe how she would frequently consume two pounds of chocolate a week, drank generous amounts of port wine and became a smoker at age 21.

At a time when public health messages emphasise just how important it is to carefully balance diets and fitness regimes in order to live long lives, Calment is a reminder of that no matter what we do there may always be a part of our health that is beyond our control.

In an intriguing new study, researchers delved into the genetic makeup of long-lived smokers like Calment and found that their survival may be due to an innate resilience they were born with.

Morgan Levine, a post-doctoral fellow in human genetics and biostatistics at the University of California-Los Angeles, and Eileen Crimmins, a gerontology professor at the University of Southern California, discovered a set of genetic markers in these smokers that they believe may allow them to better withstand and mitigate environmental damage from stressors.