Here Are the 2 Ages in Life When ‘Dramatic Changes’ in the Human Body Accelerate the Process of Getting Older

A new study found that there are two specific periods when the human body experiences drastic bursts of aging

Rather than aging being a gradual process, the human body actually experiences two dramatic bursts of aging at a molecular level, according to a new study.

The study — published Aug. 14 in the journal Nature Aging — analyzed over 135,000 types of molecules affected by aging in 108 adults aged 25 to 75. These molecules were tracked for age-related changes every three to six months.

Researchers from Stanford University found that the majority of these sampled molecules didn’t change steadily over time. Instead, they either increased or decreased rapidly around two ages: 45 and 65.

“We’re not just changing gradually over time. There are some really dramatic changes,” Michael Snyder, geneticist at Stanford University and study co-author.

“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.”

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For people in their mid-40s, the study detailed significant changes in molecules related to alcohol, caffeine and fat metabolism, heart disease and skin and muscle. For those in their mid-60s, significant changes were seen in molecules related to carbohydrate and caffeine metabolism, immune regulation, kidney function and heart disease, as well as in skin and muscles.

Researchers say that the findings could help better understand what drives these molecular changes.

“If we can find the drivers of these changes, we may even be able to find ways to slow or even reverse the drivers of the aging at these two time points.” Xiaotao Shen, computational biologist at Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University and study co–author, told the Washington Post.

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