Using AI to track 365 genes involved in brain-specific functions as well as fundamental processes, scientists have identified over 450 antiaging treatments that could lead to improved longevity. While the tests are still being performed in the lab, a number of other human controlled trials and case series have demonstrated the malleability of epigenetic or biological age and how it can be significantly reduced with more specific and earlier interventions. Although the epigenetic age of individuals in their 60s living with degenerative diseases can be raised by as much as 15 years, with prompt treatment this difference was shown to decrease in older patients. As people over the age of 65 will likely account for up to 25% of North American populations by 2040, further research on aging and age-related disorders has become essential in order to ensure older people enjoy a healthier and more productive longevity. Strategies to slow down cellular aging in all ages range from lifestyle changes to improve gut health to epigenetic reprogramming to counteract cellular decline, and more extensive longitudinal studies could help to provide the data necessary for developing further effective interventions.
Compiling Data to Develop Advanced Longevity Medicine
The process of aging is complex and it can be challenging to develop and test effective and individually tailored interventions without longer term investigations and clinical trials. While most large medical studies tend to focus on a particular disease, researchers in Canada are trying to understand more fully the process of aging which often involves a number of comorbidities. By following 50,000 participants over 20 years, the
Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA) could provide valuable data points to help deal with the trajectories of aging. So far, information collected from the study has been included in over 700 publications and shared with over 600 research teams around the world. The increase in information on reversing biological age leads to effective evidence-based longevity medicine and treatments such as hormone optimization and biome balancing.
Building Resilience to Aging With Precision Nutrition
Lifestyle changes such as increasing activity and managing a healthy diet are vital to reversing biological age. As diet affects the microbiome, levels of inflammation and systemic resilience, it acts as an effective modulator of biological aging. With a data-driven approach, precision nutrition customizes dietary recommendations according to individual characteristics such as environment, lifestyle, and genetics. After an intervention of just eight weeks, one specific plant-based diet has been shown to reverse biological age by over 3 years. This is due to the natural compounds contained in the foods known as methyl adaptogens which modulate DNA methylation, regulate gene expression and correct processes linked with accelerated aging. Participants in the study were healthy adults aged between 50 and 72, a period of life when signs of age-related changes become apparent.
Epigenetic Reprogramming to Counter the Aging Process
Another example of precision medicine is epigenetic reprogramming. A new area of study called “reprogramming-induced epigenetic rejuvenation” aims to slow the aging process by altering gene expression patterns and epigenetic markers without actually modifying the DNA sequence. While still in its early stages, research into the modification of epigenetic marks to improve longevity is looking promising. The ageing process is primarily driven by epigenetic changes, but through reprogramming, transcription factors can result in the reversal of cellular age.
As populations continue to get older, further research on aging and declining health is essentia. Personalized lifestyle changes and hormone treatments have already been shown to be effective in restoring health and reversing biological age in individuals of all ages, while the study of brain-aging genes and the development of epigenetic reprogramming could lead to improved longevity in the future
