Understanding Biological Age

While a quick glance at a calendar reveals your chronological age, it's your body that truly reflects your biological age. Although chronological and biological aging generally align, discrepancies exist. We all know individuals who appear either older or younger than their actual age—like a fit fifty-year-old or an adventurous sixty-year-old.

So, how do we determine biological age? Are wrinkles and gray hairs reliable indicators? Not quite. Some individuals may have more wrinkles due to sun exposure, while others may gray early due to genetics (I experienced my first gray strands before I even turned eighteen).

A modern approach to gauge biological age involves the use of epigenetic aging clocks. These clocks measure the dynamics of epigenetic tags that can attach to DNA and modify gene activity, reflecting various aging aspects. Though these epigenetic clocks are continually improving, they do not yet encompass all aging processes. Nevertheless, they offer a more quantitative means of estimating biological age compared to average reference groups.

(Note: It's important to recognize that companies claiming to determine your biological age are often providing estimates based on reference data. Unless there's a significant disparity between your chronological and biological age, there's no need for alarm.)

The Impact of Alcohol

Recent research underscores that no amount of alcohol may be truly beneficial. Just weeks ago, the WHO confirmed this finding, and we previously learned that even small amounts of alcohol can adversely affect brain health. Some past studies suggesting that moderate consumption (1-2 drinks) is optimal often overlook sociodemographic factors, sometimes even including former alcoholics in the abstainer category, which skews the results.

It's worth noting that heavy drinkers often appear older than their actual age. But are they biologically older than their chronological age suggests?

A recent study examined the connections between cumulative and binge drinking, alongside the types of alcohol consumed, and their effects on four measures of epigenetic age acceleration (EAA).

Involving 945 participants (slightly over half female, approximately evenly split between Black and white, with an average age of around 40), the study gathered data on alcohol consumption and conducted DNA analyses at two intervals, 15 and 20 years apart.

Key findings include:

• For every additional five years of alcohol consumption, there was a 0.31-year increase in epigenetic aging when liquor was involved, and a 0.12-year increase when liquor was not consumed.
• Interestingly, this correlation did not appear when only "wine years" were considered.
• Recent binge drinking (five or more drinks in one sitting) corresponded to a 1.38-year increase in epigenetic age, while the frequency of binge drinking was linked to a 0.15-year rise.
• Younger participants showed a stronger relationship between alcohol consumption and epigenetic aging.

The researchers concluded:

These findings contribute to the existing literature on alcohol's effects on aging and offer new insights into how different types of alcohol influence epigenetic aging. Further replication of these results and exploration of the causal mechanisms behind alcohol's impact on epigenetic age-related changes are warranted. Given the high prevalence of alcohol consumption and the aging population in the U.S., understanding the alterations to the epigenome caused by alcohol could provide valuable insights into the aging process and inform lifestyle modifications that promote longevity.

A few notes of caution: This epigenetic effect was only observed in one of the four aging clocks utilized by the researchers. Thus, while there are indications of an effect, its significance in the overall aging narrative remains uncertain (and improved aging clocks are needed). Additionally, participants self-reported their alcohol consumption. While this doesn't negate the findings, it's a factor to consider.

For further insights, feel free to connect with me on Twitter and subscribe to Thinking Ahead for more in-depth explorations of ideas.