No one at the age of 80 can remain completely mentally clear. That harsh evaluation by Ukrainian doctor Yevgeny Komarovsky was not for everyone it was specifically leveled at Vladimir Putin, a leader whose hold on office has for years been equaled by a close hold on knowledge regarding his health. Now, with rumors of his physical and mental condition mounting, the experts are chiming in on what science has to say about ageing, longevity, and the boundaries of human biology.
Putin has told China’s Xi Jinping he’d like to live to 150, according to reports. But the science is settled despite elite medical treatment, body and mind have limits that no amount of money or power can remove. Most evident is the plateau in global life expectancy. Most revealing are the subtle changes in voice that can signal cognitive decline. The signs are piling up and they indicate an inevitable trend.
Here’s what medical science, ageing science, and investigative reporting say about the realities confronting an ageing leader, and why no one regardless of position can outrun time.
1. The myth of living to 150
Putin’s statement that he’d like to make it to 150 years old may sound bombast, but Komarovsky dismisses it as “not possible, not theoretically, not practically.” Decades of demographic science confirm him. Research in the world’s longest-lived nations indicates that life expectancy increased steadily during the 20th century but now has leveled off. Indeed, scientists discovered that in countries such as Japan and Switzerland, the improvement rate has slowed down so considerably that chances are virtually zero for anyone to reach the age of 150. Even in the current longevity champion Hong Kong, just 12.8% of girls born in 2019 will live to 100.
2. Science has reached a longevity ceiling
For most of the last century, medicine added years to our lives pretty much on schedule. But by a Nature Aging analysis, since 1990, the rate of gain has slowed sharply. S. Jay Olshansky, a professor of public health at the University of Illinois at Chicago, states, “Our bodies don’t operate well when you push them beyond their warranty period.” In the absence of advances that decelerate biological ageing itself, extreme life extension in already long-lived countries is impossible this century.
3. Genetics put strict limits
Even with the most skilled doctors on duty, biology always prevails. Komarovsky cites the fact that Putin’s parents had fairly long lifespans but didn’t live to be 100. Longevity research, such as the New England Centenarian Study, demonstrates that although healthy lifestyle is significant, there are inherited genetic elements that control whether one makes it to old age extremes. And no team of physicians no matter how competent can reprogram that genetic instruction.
4. The blood vessels in the brain can’t be replaced
Hearts, kidneys, even lungs are transplantable. But the delicate network of blood vessels in the brain? That cannot be replaced. Komarovsky cautions that these vessels inevitably weaken with age, constricting blood flow and mental acuity. This is consistent with neurological findings that even minor vascular shifts can speed memory loss and compromise decision-making serious concerns for anyone wielding power.
5. Mental acuity wanes after 80
Komarovsky’s blunt assertion “No one at the age of 80 can keep full mental clarity” is reinforced by cognitive science. Decline with ageing in processing speed, attention, and executive function is documented even among healthy adults. In politics, where the ramifications of decisions are worldwide, this is discomfortingly suggestive of a diminishment in the ability of ageing leaders to rule effectively without cognitive test procedures.
6. Change of voice as an early warning sign
Komarovsky observed a change in Putin’s timbre since 2022, characterizing it as less energetic. Research confirms this observation: A longitudinal study identified that characteristics such as higher jitter (pitch instability) and smaller pulse can predict declines in memory, verbal fluency, and attention years earlier than dementia is diagnosed. Voice analysis is being seen as a low-cost, non-invasive biomarker for cognitive status.
7. Decline is inevitable no matter the resources
Putin takes a large medical team with him when he travels and has apparently tried out-of-the-box treatments such as deer antler baths. But as Komarovsky says, no matter the care, no amount of it will be able to stop the natural process of ageing. Research on caloric restriction, mTOR pathway inhibitors such as rapamycin, and other geroscience ‘moonshots’ are promising longer healthspan, but none have been found to dramatically lengthen human lifespan. For the octogenarian leader, the path is mapped decreased cerebral blood flow, slower mind, and fading concentration are natural and irreversible features of ageing.
The alignment of medical evidence, ageing biology, and investigative reporting paints a clear picture modern medicine can slow some consequences of ageing but cannot prevent them. For leaders such as Putin, the issue isn’t whether to decline it’s how it will influence their decision-making and, subsequently, the world. Ultimately, time is the one force no political authority can outsmart.
