Researchers at UC San Francisco have discovered a link between diets rich in vitamins and minerals, particularly those low in added sugar, and a younger biological age at the cellular level. This study, published in JAMA Network Open, is among the first to demonstrate a link between added sugar and epigenetic aging
The study examined how three different measures of healthy eating influenced an “epigenetic clock”—a biochemical test that estimates health and lifespan. The findings showed that the better people ate, the younger their cells appeared. However, even with healthy diets, each gram of added sugar consumed was associated with an increase in epigenetic age.
For this cross-sectional study, researchers analyzed food records from 342 participants with the average age of 39 years old. They compared these diets to epigenetic clock measures derived from saliva samples.
The researchers scored the diets against a Mediterranean-style diet rich in anti-inflammatory and antioxidant foods, and a diet associated with a lower risk of chronic disease. They also created the “Epigenetic Nutrient Index (ENI),” based on nutrients linked to anti-oxidative or anti-inflammatory processes and DNA maintenance and repair. These nutrients include Vitamins A, C, B12, and E, folate, selenium, magnesium, dietary fiber, and isoflavones.
Adherence to any of the diets correlated with lower epigenetic age, with the Mediterranean diet showing the strongest association. Separate analysis of sugar intake revealed that consuming foods with added sugar was linked to accelerated biological aging, even within an otherwise healthy diet.
Researchers found that epigenetic patterns appear to be reversible, where reducing 10 grams of added sugar per day might turn back the biological clock by 2.4 months if sustained over time.
It is important to note that the study does not demonizes naturally sweet food such as fruit but rather from added sugar. There are already so many naturally sweet food, one can continue to eat sweets without accelerating their aging.
“From a lifestyle medicine standpoint, it is empowering to see how heeding these recommendations may promote a younger cellular age relative to chronological age,” stated author, Dorothy Chin.
“We knew that high levels of added sugars are linked to worsened metabolic health and early disease, possibly more than any other dietary factor,” added co-author, Elissa Epel. “Now we know that accelerated epigenetic aging is underlying this relationship, and this is likely one of many ways that excessive sugar intake limits healthy longevity.”
DT Chiu et al. Essential Nutrients, Added Sugar Intake, and Epigenetic Age in Midlife Black and White Women: NIMHD Social Epigenomics Program. JAMA Open Network (2024). doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.22749
