Want to live to 100? This may depend on Mom

A team at the University of Chicago found that people born to women younger than 25 were about 2 times more likely to live for a century or longer than people born to older mothers.

The study of 198 centenarians born in the United States from 1890-1893 found that first-born children were more likely to live to 100 than later-born siblings. After further analysis, the researchers concluded that this longevity advantage among first-born children was largely linked to the fact that they were born when their mothers were in their teens or early 20s.

Just a FYI - according to the Census Bureau, between 1990 and 2000, the number of centenarians in the United States increased from 37,000 to 55,000. Women are 3 to 5 times more likely than men to reach 100 years.