Stress speeds up aging, but it's reversible

A recent study has found that our biological age, measured by markers on our DNA, can rise and fall in response to stressful events. Researchers used epigenetic clocks to measure the biological age of participants who had emergency hip surgery, severe COVID-19, or were pregnant. They found that biological age rapidly increased during stressful events but returned to pre-event levels during recovery periods. However, the overall trend still continues towards becoming older, according to Luigi Fontana at the University of Sydney. The study also found that young mice experienced a sudden increase in biological age after they were surgically joined to older mice, suggesting that biological ageing speeds up during stressful events but reverses afterwards. This is consistent with a previous study that found that people’s grey hairs sometimes regain their original colour after they recover from psychologically stressful events. The researchers believe that the study raises the possibility of developing therapeutics to drive this reversal further, although more research is needed. The study provides insight into the biological effects of stress and how our bodies respond to stressful events.