Speaking to the Times, Dr Manel Esteller, the principal investigator on the study, said, “The common rule is that as we age we become sicker but she was an exception and we wanted to understand why. For the first time, we’ve been able to separate being old from being sick.”
Dr Esteller added: “We can develop drugs to reproduce the effects of good genes. Maria’s parents gave her very good genes, but we cannot choose our parents.”
The results suggested she was biologically 10 to 15 years younger, so at her death she was more like a sprightly centenarian than her actual age. She also displayed extremely low levels of ‘bad’ cholesterol and triglycerides, and very high levels of ‘good’ cholesterol.
Maria led a healthy life that included plenty of exercise, no bad habits such as smoking or drinking alcohol, and had a great social life.
However, there was another thing that she loved that could play a role in her longevity; the yoghurt of her favorite Spanish brand La Fageda.
It is a probiotic variety containing inflammation-fighting bacteria.
According to the Mirror, Maria’s mornings started with a cereal-packed smoothie with eight different cereal varieties.