What dogs teach us about aging

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The world’s largest study of dogs is investigating questions about our four-legged friends’ aging.

Every dog owner has faced the hard realization that their dog won’t live as long as they do, but we’ve all probably wondered: Why do some dogs live longer than others? It turns out that several factors are at play, according to The Dog Aging Project.

Professor Daniel Promislow of the University of Washington is codirector of the project, which was originally funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). It examines how biology, lifestyle, and environment can increase both the health and lifespan of more than 50,000 dogs.

In this episode of the University of Chicago’s Big Brains podcast, Promislow dives into whether we can help our dogs live longer—and what their research could actually teach humans about aging:

Read the transcript of the episode. Subscribe to Big Brains on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

Source: University of Chicago