Saul Newman: ‘If you’re Elon Musk and you’ve bought everything, the only thing left to sell is a way to escape death’

Australian researcher Saul Newman argues that remarkable claims about people living beyond 100, and the so-called blue zones where longevity is thought to be unusually common, may be built on unreliable records and statistical errors. His work challenges explanations centred on diet or genetics and says that improving average lifespan and quality of life matters more than chasing extreme old age.

Newman points to cases such as Jiroemon Kimura, whose records listed conflicting birth dates and school years, and says age misreporting can distort survival statistics: people recorded as older than they are appear unusually likely to reach extreme ages. He says around 5% to 10% of the US population has an inaccurate age, while a quarter of the world’s children lack birth certificates. He also questions the evidence and potential conflicts of interest behind blue zone research; the article excerpt ends before detailing the cases discussed in his book.