Joel Kontinen
Taking a daily
omega-3 supplement appears to slow down the rate of biological ageing by three
months – and even more so if you also take vitamin D and exercise.
How can Omega-3
capsules slow down ageing in older people?
Here is what New Scientist says of the formula:
“Daily Omega-3
supplement seems to slow biological ageing in older people,
particularly if combined with vitamin D and exercise.
We already knew
that Omega-3’s – “good” fats found in seeds, nuts and some fish – can
boost our immunity, heart health and brain function.
They have also
been linked to changes in “epigenetic” markers, chemical tags on DNA that
alter the activity of genes and, in turn, how cells behave. This suggests that
omega-3s reduce the pace of biological ageing, often defined as a measure
of how quickly someone’s body is deteriorating compared with the general
population’s.
To explore this further, Heike
Bischoff-Ferrari at the University of Zurich and her colleagues split
777 people in Switzerland, aged 70 to 91, into eight groups. They also wanted to find out how Omega-3 may work
alongside vitamin D supplements and exercise.
“Omega-3 plays on multiple pathways of ageing, such as
being anti-inflammatory. Similarly, vitamin D and exercise have multiple
benefits,” says Bischoff-Ferrari. “We thought, if you play on each of these
differential pathways, do you get an additive benefit?”
Some of the
participants were already taking these supplements or doing strength training
at the supplements, says Bischoff-Ferrari, so they were allowed to continue.
Yes, we know that
exercise, the sun (the source of vitamin D) and Omega-3 will slow down our ageing.
Source:
Carissa Wong 2025 Omega-3 supplements seem to slow down biological ageing | New Scientist 3 February
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