Men and women with more moles are less likely to develop osteoporosis and look up to seven years younger than their true age, according to researchers from King's College London. Other suspected benefits include tauter muscles and healthier eyes and heart, which outweigh the risk of skin cancer linked to the presence of moles.

 

Researchers looked at 1,200 non-identical female twins aged between 18 and 79 and found that those with more than 100 moles were half as likely to develop osteoporosis as those with fewer than 25.

 

People with lots of moles are known to produce white blood cells with unusually long telomeres, a part of DNA which allows it to replicate, preventing deterioration. The longer it is, the more time before it starts to degrade.

 

They believe these findings could pave the way for a cream which "switches off" wrinkles, doing away with the perceived need for collagen injections or plastic surgery.

 

Moles are the result of rapidly dividing cells which produce a dark pigment in the skin, usually in childhood. They often begin to disappear from middle age but in some people they continue to spread.