Diana van Heemst

At a glance

• Diana van Heemst is a Dutch ageing researcher at Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC), in the Department of Internal Medicine, section of Gerontology and Geriatrics.
• She contributes to the Leiden Longevity Study, which compares families with exceptionally long-lived siblings with their partners.
• Her research showed that offspring of long-lived families have more favourable glucose metabolism and insulin sensitivity, as well as differences in thyroid function.
• As early as 2005 she published on the role of insulin/IGF-1 signalling in human longevity, a pathway that strongly influences lifespan in animals.
• She also studies how sleep, day–night rhythm and hormones such as cortisol relate to metabolism and healthy ageing.
• For longevity, her work shows that healthy long life is linked to how the body regulates energy, hormones and rhythms.
• Takeaway: a regular sleep–wake rhythm and enough sleep support your metabolism.