A new Stanford study published in August 2024 shows that we humans go through rapid and accelerated bursts of aging, on average at age 44 and then again at age 60. So if you’ve ever felt that your body is breaking down all at once, it might not be your imagination.
What does the study show?
In the study, researchers tracked thousands of different molecules in people age 25 to 75 and found that humans tend to make two big leaps in aging- one around age 44 and another around age 60. These findings indicate that aging actually happens in bursts, and it does not only happen to women. The researchers had thought the mid-40s changes in women would be attributed to peri-menopausal changes in women influencing the overall numbers, but when they separated the results by sex, they saw similar changes in men in their 40s.
“We’re not just changing gradually over time. There are some really dramatic changes,”said Professor Michael Snyder, geneticist and director of the Center for Genomics and Personalized Medicine at Stanford University. “It turns out the mid-40s is a time of dramatic change, as is the early 60s. And that’s true no matter what class of molecules you look at.” For people in their 40s, significant changes were seen in the number of molecules related to alcohol, caffeine and lipid metabolism as well as cardiovascular disease, skin and muscle. For those in their 60s, researchers saw changes related to carbohydrate and caffeine metabolism, immune regulation, kidney function, cardiovascular disease, and skin and muscle.
Is there anything we can do?
It is understandable that we worry about aging, since signs of aging remind us of our own mortality. In a society where youth is viewed as ideal and beautiful, we may dread getting older. But the truth is, none of us can avoid aging altogether, so the more positive and healthy we are in our approach to aging, the better off we will be. We can pay attention to our health, especially in our 40s and 60s, and adopt certain lifestyle habits to help minimize the risk of disease and gracefully help ourselves transition through time. The following are a few tips to get started:
- Decrease alcohol consumption, especially starting in your 40s since your ability to metabolize alcohol slows down around that time. Click here to learn how much alcohol is too much.
- Keep active and be consistent with exercise to protect your heart and maintain muscle mass as you age. Click here to read how much exercise is needed for a longer, healthier life.
- Intense, unmanaged stress can cause rapid, premature aging- no matter how old you are. Ensure that you use stress-management or recovery techniques to help process excessive, unnecessary or unhelpful stress to bring your body back into recovery mode (i.e. parasympathetic nervous system), where proper rest, digestion and repair can occur.
Click here to learn more anti-aging solutions to prevent premature aging and slow the aging process, naturally. If you need help in restoring optimal health or are interested in personalized anti-aging solutions, talk to your licensed naturopathic doctor. Click here to learn how Dr. Yik can help you.
Dr. Ardyce Yik ND 