A third of babies born in the UK 'will live to 100'

If you thought blowing out this year's birthday candles was tough then think about this...

A third of babies born in 2012 in the UK are expected to live to 100.

Experts at the Office of National Statistics looked at how long people are living at the moment to figure out the new number.

The number of centenarians has been going up for the past 50 years with improvements in medicine and technology helping people to live longer.

Back in 1961 there were only around 600 centenarians in the UK but by 2010 there were almost 13,000.

More women than men are expected to reach 100 as traditionally women have a longer life expectancy.

What do you think?

We asked whether you like to live to 100 years old... and what you think the world might be like if you lived until your 100th birthday.

Here's a selection of your comments:

Your comments:

"I would quite like to live to 100. My great aunty is 107 which is amazing! She was in the papers last year when she chased some stupid teens off with a zimmer frame."

Tiegan, 12, Cheshire, England

"I would love to live to 100 because you get a letter from the Queen and see the world change!"

Kirsty, 11, Cambridgeshire, England

"I think that I would love to live till I was 100 because I would be able to see all the amazing things that will happen in the world... you might even see robots!"

Anna, 10, Luton, England

"I really want to live to 100! I agree to making your life last."

Emily, 10, Kent, England

"It would be amazing to watch the world grow stronger and technology change but you wouldn't have enough energy to do basic day-to-day things. There are advantages and disadvantages."

Grace, 11, Northern Ireland

"I would love to live till I'm 100 because you get a letter from the Queen and you might be lucky enough to be filmed on Newsround!"

Freya, 10, England

"I wouldn't like to live to be 100 because the world might change in many ways, but I'd like it to stay the same plus people ignore you when you're old."

Alesha, 12, Solihull, England

"I wouldn't want to live to 100 because you might end up living way longer than your loved ones, but you would get to see the World Cup and Olympics loads!"

Beth, 12, Scunthorpe, England

"I'd love to live to 100! It would be nice because I'd get to see my great-grandchildren, it'd be awesome! I might try and live to 200."

Kimberley-Ann, 13, Birmingham, England

"I would only like to live to 100 if I was in good health. I would love to see the world change and develop and tell my stories of childhood to as many generations as possible."

Skye, 13, Oxfordshire, England

"I think it would be cool because you would be able to see all the differences and all the new inventions. But on the other hand you might be really ill and wouldn't be able to do anything."

Katie, 12, Norfolk, England

"I really like the idea of receiving a letter from the Queen at 100, but I think I would find it difficult to live with being so weak. However, it would be interesting to see how much the world has changed over the years, and that I can live to tell my story."

Holly, 13, London, England

"I wouldn't want to live to 100 because I think I wouldn't be able to take care of myself."

George, 10, Cardiff, Wales

"I wouldn't like to live to 100 because you'll know you're old and weak, plus you won't be able to do fun stuff."

Larissa, 10, London, England

"I would hate to live to a 100 it would get so boring."

Liam, 12, Richmond, England

"I might not want to live to 100 because if all my friends and family had died and I was really weak it wouldn't be that great."

Kitty, 11, Hertfordshire, England

"I think that living until 100 is a great opportunity. You'd get to see your grand- grand- grandchildren."

Zubeyr, 12, Birmingham, England

"I would love to be a person that lives to one hundred years old because I might be remembered."

Priyangaa, 10, London, England

"I would definitely want to live to 100 but it depends on my wealth."

Sana, 11, London, England

"I wouldn't like to live to 100 because you'd have to watch all those who you love die and watch the world change. I would be really sad if I have to die alone."

Chloe, 11, Leicester, England

"I think that living to 100 is a great opportunity. You get to see your great great grandchildren. If I had the chance I would use it wisely."

Zubeyr, 12, Birmingham, England

"I would love to live to 100 because you get a letter from the Queen and you would probably be the oldest person in your family."

Katy, 11, Lanarkshire, Scotland

"I would rather die earlier than 100 because when you're too old you get weak and might not be able to do anything."

Naima, 14, West Midlands, England

"I think people assume straight off that living to a hundred would be great but then you think about your quality of life, you'll probably have lots of medical problems and not much energy. I don't think it would be good to live to a hundred."

Brooklyn, 14, Glasgow, Scotland