Do you ever emerge from the DMV feeling like you’ve aged 10 years?
A new study suggests it could be because you have. Researchers from the Duke University School of Medicine and Harvard Medical School have found that the biological age of both people and mice increase rapidly in response to different kinds of stress.
Bodies grow older over the course of their lives, but “biological age” may not always mirror “chronological age,” according to the study.
Now, there is a growing body of evidence — pun intended — that your “true” age can be influenced by things like disease, drug treatments, lifestyle changes, environmental exposures and more.
Transient changes in our average biological age can occur during particularly stressful events that push a body to work harder, or differently, than it usually does. Common examples include major surgery, pregnancy or severe COVID-19. The key word here is transient, as the conditions still allow the body to return to some kind of baseline, once the stressor has been removed from the equation.
By now, most of us understand that prolonged stress has a profound effect on our physical and mental health. The good news is that your body won’t stay prematurely older forever — as long as you’re able to bring that stress baseline down. To do that, give your body the tools it needs to handle any potential stressors with grace: A good night’s rest, more green on your dinner plate and daily walks to get yourself moving and clear your mind.
After all, aging is a gift not given to everyone, but that doesn’t mean you need to receive it before your time.