Every morning, millions of people wake up hoping to look, think and feel younger than they did yesterday.

The anti-ageing industry is worth hundreds of billions of dollars, promising everything from “miracle” supplements to gene therapies. Few people embody this pursuit more visibly than entrepreneur Bryan Johnson, whose quest to slow ageing and achieve “immortality” has gained global fascination.

Johnson has meticulously documented countless treatments in his biohacking regimen, including cosmetic enhancements, stem cell therapies, a total plasma replacement and, most recently, even cloning his own cells.

The message is clear: ageing is something to defeat.

But science tells a more complicated story.

While some aspects of functioning become less efficient with age, others remain remarkably resilient. Some even improve. Far from being a period of inevitable decline, research shows later life can bring a variety of unexpected strengths.

Ageing is not a linear process

Much of what we hear about ageing focuses on what becomes harder.

Older adults often experience reductions in processing speed, working memory capacity, episodic memory retrieval and aspects of learning.

These changes are real and important, particularly when they affect everyday independence or signal neurodegenerative disease, such as dementia.

However, ageing research increasingly shows that cognitive........

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