How to Stay Young

In the first episode, The Body, Angela and Chris discover that scientists now know how much of the way we age is down to genetics - and how much of it is down to the way we live our lives. They look at the latest science that reveals the best lifestyle choices we can make to combat the effects of ageing.

Angela travels to Germany where she follows a study comparing the benefits of dancing with conventional gym exercises and reveals which activity best keeps us fit and strong into old age. Chris visits a community outside Los Angeles that has one of the lowest levels of heart disease in America and high life expectancy, and looks at how their good health could be down to diet.

With studies showing that positive attitude towards ageing can add years to our lives, Chris turns 80 years old for a day thanks to Hollywood-style prosthetics. Since how we feel about old age is hugely influenced by society's treatment of the older generation, Chris decides to experience the public's reaction to the elderly first-hand.

Along the way, Chris and Angela have their own wake up calls about how well they are ageing. Chris takes a newly pioneered test that reveals on a molecular level how quickly his body is getting old, by comparing his biological age with his actual age. Will his body be as young as he feels, or older than it should be? Meanwhile, Angela has a startling wake-up call when she learns that despite her active, healthy lifestyle a body scan reveals she is carrying seven kilos of excess internal fat that has the potential to be dangerous.

The programme goes on to look at what is happening at the frontiers of science to tackle ageing. In Ecuador Chris meets Yannick Castilo, who looks like a young child but is actually 17 years old. He has Laron syndrome and could hold the key to curing ageing, as the syndrome means he is virtually immune from cancer and diabetes and he will never grow old like the rest of us.

In this second episode, The Brain, Angela and Chris explore the latest research into ways of keeping the brain healthier for longer. They also look at the science that could help protect against brain disease, one of the fastest growing areas of research, and a subject particularly close to Angela's heart as her mother died of vascular dementia.

In Japan Angela discovers the foods can help protect your brain and meets a 100 year old who is living proof of the importance of diet in maintaining a healthy brain. In the USA Chris is granted exclusive access to a trial where Alzheimer's sufferers are being injected with young people's blood to observe effects on the brain.

The BBC team up with Kings College, London to carry out a unique study into which exercise is best for the brain, putting brisk walking and table tennis head-to-head. The study reveals that after just 10 weeks of exercise actual changes to the structure of the brain can be seen - but which exercise comes out tops in improving brain function?

How To Stay Young features inspirational centenarians, includes cautionary tales and offers tricks and tips to improve the cards we're dealt - all with one ultimate goal to help us live better and healthier lives for longer.