What's the secret to still walking on two feet at 100?

[Financial News] The ability to walk on two feet even at 100 may come from the brain rather than the legs. An analysis of the genomes of centenarians who can walk found that 15 of 42 candidate genes were expressed specifically in the brain. The findings will be presented at a centenarian forum examining the conditions for healthy longevity through genomic research, field surveys and national statistics.
Chonnam National University Hospital held a forum on the 16th and presented research findings on centenarians. The Korea Centenarian Research Group began at Seoul National University College of Medicine in 2001, and Chonnam National University College of Medicine took over, continuing research on centenarians for 25 years. Last June, it hosted the 30th annual scientific meeting of the International Centenarian Consortium (ICC) in Gochang, North Jeolla Province.

Professor Kim Jeong-su of Chosun University presented on “Brain Health as Revealed by the Genomes of Walking Centenarians.” He assessed centenarians' walking ability using the functional ambulation index (FAC) and analyzed their genomes based on the results. Of the 42 candidate genes, 15 were expressed specifically in the brain, with many expressed in the cerebellum and cerebral cortex in particular.
This means that understanding walking ability requires looking not only at muscles and physical function but also at brain function and the nervous system's regulatory mechanisms. Professor Kim suggested that a neural regulatory network linking the brain and muscles may play a role in maintaining walking ability.

The forum will also present findings from a field survey of centenarians in Gochang, North Jeolla Province. Gochang County is a super-aged rural area, where 42.0% of the population is aged 65 or older—nearly twice the national average of 22.2%. From March 30 to April 10, the research team visited and interviewed 51 residents of Gochang County aged 90 to 102. Their average age was 95.2, and six were aged 100 or older.
The survey participants had lived in one village for an average of 68.5 years and scored 4.07 out of 5 for attachment to their community. Some 62.5% said they often socialized with neighbors and acquaintances, while 61.7% said they took part in regular gatherings. The places they had most recently visited outside their homes were hospitals (74.5%), restaurants (51.1%) and village halls (48.9%), in that order. The most common groups they participated in were village hall and village gatherings.
By contrast, participants had an average of 5.2 surviving children, but 72% lived alone. Their chronic disease management score was high, at 3.5 out of 4, while their exercise and physical activity score was just 1.4 out of 3. Some 45% could go out alone, and 81.3% cited “physical difficulties” as the reason they did not socialize with neighbors.
The researchers recommend expanding integrated care tailored to rural areas, including physical activity programs based at village halls, accompaniment on outings and transportation support, as well as home-visit social programs that help people maintain relationships even after their physical function declines.
Han Jae-yeong, director of Chonnam National University's Center for Geriatric Medicine and a professor in the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine at Chonnam National University Hospital, said, “Healthy longevity among centenarians should be considered not only in terms of their physical health, but also their ties to the communities where they have lived for a long time, their interactions with neighbors and the conditions that enable daily activities.” He added, “I hope this will be an opportunity to consider a rural integrated care system centered on village halls.”
Professor Park Yong-ju of the Division of Food and Nutrition Sciences at Chonnam National University will present comparisons of centenarians' nutrition and eating habits, while Professor Lee Ru-ji of the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine at Chonnam National University Hwasun Hospital will present an update on the Gochang centenarian survey and its characteristics.

Bae Sang-mu, a team leader at the Honam Regional Data Office of the National Data Agency, said in a special lecture that as of 2025, South Korea had 8,604 people aged 100 or older, a 54% increase from five years earlier. South Jeolla Province had the highest number of people aged 100 or older per 100,000 population among the provinces and metropolitan cities, at 31.8, compared with a national average of 17.3. Among cities and counties, Goheung County in South Jeolla had the highest figure, at 91.8.
Park Sang-cheol, a distinguished professor at Chonnam National University, said, “Research on centenarians is meaningful not only because it reveals the characteristics of people who live a long time, but also because it helps identify the conditions for aging healthily and the tasks society needs to prepare for.” He added, “I hope that connecting field surveys, genomic research and national statistics will provide an opportunity to pursue practical changes, from individual health management to community care policies.”
 

[email protected] Jeong Myeong-jin, medical correspondent Reporter