Besides being more robust, descendants of long-lived individuals had a higher education level, a lower prevalence of obesity, lower levels of IL-6, higher total and LDL cholesterol (with a lower percentage of subjects with an LDL/ApoB ratio of less than 1.3), and a lower prevalence of geriatric syndromes such as pain, insomnia, and polypharmacy. The gene discussed is IL6; the disease is obesity due to melanocortin 4 receptor deficiency.