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Gulf Insider
26-05-2025
- Health
- Gulf Insider
Vitamin D Supplements May Help Slow Aging, New Study Finds
A study published on Thursday found that people with higher vitamin D intake may be slowing a process linked to aging. In a paper released by the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition on May 22, Mass General Brigham and the Medical College of Georgia researchers looked at results from a randomized controlled trial known as VITAL showing that taking vitamin D3 supplements can help support telomeres, which are protective ends on chromosomes. 'VITAL is the first large-scale and long-term randomized trial to show that vitamin D supplements protect telomeres and preserve telomere length,' co-author JoAnn Manson said in a statement issued by Mass General Brigham. 'This is of particular interest because VITAL had also shown benefits of vitamin D in reducing inflammation and lowering risks of selected chronic diseases of aging, such as advanced cancer and autoimmune disease.' VITAL, they said, is a randomized, placebo-controlled, and double-blind trial of vitamin D3 and omega-3 supplementation involving U.S. females aged 55 and older and males aged 50 and older. Participants took 2,000 IU, or about 50 micrograms, of vitamin D3 per day and about 1 gram of omega-3 per day. In their research, they found that when taking vitamin D3 supplements as compared with taking a placebo, it significantly reduced the shortening of telomeres over a four-year period and was able to prevent 'the equivalent of nearly three years of aging,' the statement said. The researchers said that while several smaller-scale studies have suggested that vitamin D or omega-4 fatty acid supplements could help maintain telomeres, the results haven't been consistent. The researchers also noted that taking omega-3 supplements did not have a significant effect on the length of telomeres. Omega-3 is also commonly found in fish oil supplements and is associated with several benefits to the heart, brain, and joints. 'Our findings suggest that targeted vitamin D supplementation may be a promising strategy to counter a biological aging process, although further research is warranted,' Haidong Zhu, an author of the study who works at Augusta University's Medical College of Georgia, said in a statement. Separate research has suggested that shorter telomeres are associated with aging and a higher chance of developing certain diseases. According to a paper published by the National Institutes of Health, telomere length can potentially serve as a 'biological clock' to determine how long a cell lives or how long an organism will live. Telomeres, which are made of sequences of DNA, prevent the ends of chromosomes from merging with other chromosomes or deteriorating over time, the researchers noted. Vitamin D can be obtained through sunlight or foods such as fatty fish, egg yolks, cheeses, orange juice, fortified cereals, and certain types of mushrooms. Also Read: $67 In France And $798 In US – Why Prescription Drug Prices Are So High In America
Health Line
24-05-2025
- Health
- Health Line
Vitamin D May Slow Biological Aging and Help You Live Longer
A new study suggests that vitamin D supplementation may help preserve the lengths of the protective caps at the ends of chromosomes known as telomeres. Researchers say maintaining the length of telomeres may help slow some aspects of biological aging. Telomere length is an important component of healthy aging, but the role vitamin D can play isn't yet certain. A new study reports that vitamin D supplementation may help slow some of the mechanisms of biological aging. The research, published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, suggests that vitamin D may help maintain the stability of telomeres, the protective caps at the end of chromosomes that tend to shorten as people get older. That shortening is a natural part of aging, but it has been linked to certain age-related diseases. Among those diseases are cancer of the bladder, lungs, kidneys, and gastrointestinal systems. 'Our findings suggest that targeted vitamin D supplementation may be a promising strategy to counter a biological aging process, although further research is warranted,' said Haidong Zhu, MD, PhD, the first author of the study and a molecular geneticist at the Medical College of Georgia, Augusta University, in a statement. Experts agree the new research is interesting, but they note it has its limits. 'Telomere length was protected with vitamin D supplementation, but it's not clear how that translates to real life biological aging,' Marilyn Tan, MD, a clinical associate professor of medicine at Stanford University in California, told Healthline. Tan wasn't involved in the study. 'The present study involved only a relatively small number of people, looked only at telomeres in white blood cells, and did not look extensively at the health impact of these telomere changes,' added David Cutler, MD, a family medicine physician at Providence Saint John's Health Center in Santa Monica, California. 'So, the clinical implications one can derive from this study are quite limited.' Cutler was likewise not involved in the study. Vitamin D and the aging process The researchers based their findings on the results of the VITAL randomized controlled clinical trial, which was overseen by Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston. For their study, the researchers tracked 1,054 participants to see if vitamin D and omega-3 fatty acids can lessen telomere shortening and slow biological aging. The study group included females ages 55 and older and males ages 50 and older. The researchers followed the participants for five years, measuring telomere length in white blood cells at baseline, year two, and year four. The researchers reported that omega-3 fatty acids had no significant effect on telomere length. However, they said vitamin D3 supplements significantly reduced telomere shortening and prevented the equivalent of nearly three years of aging in people who took vitamin D in comparison to people who were given a placebo. Experts say such a slowdown in the aging process has important benefits. 'Slowing biological aging may improve life expectancy and quality of life, and it could reduce the risk of various disease states,' Tan said. How to boost your vitamin D intake It's estimated that 35% of people in the United States have a deficiency of vitamin D. The current recommendation for daily vitamin D consumption is 400 to 800 international units for most healthy people. Vitamin D is known as the 'sunshine vitamin' because the best source for it is sunlight. Your body makes dietary vitamin D3 out of the cholesterol in the skin when it is exposed to the sun's UV rays. The best time to get the most of this beneficial sunlight is noon, when the sun is at its peak. However, experts say that too much sunlight can cause sunburns, eye damage, heatstroke, and skin cancer. There aren't a lot of foods that are sufficient sources of vitamin D, but there are a few. They are: cod liver oil cooked swordfish cooked salmon canned tuna cooked beef liver large egg yolks In addition, you can drink milk fortified with vitamin D. Some types of mushrooms as well as cheese can also be healthy sources for vitamin D. Tan said the amount of vitamin D a person needs depends on the individual. 'The ideal amount of supplementation depends on one's baseline vitamin D level,' she explained. 'Various factors can impact vitamin D levels and metabolism, including sun exposure, time of year, geographical location, skin tone, kidney function, among other factors.' 'While sun exposure can increase vitamin D levels, excessive UV exposure has other health risks,' Tan noted. 'Vitamin D can be obtained to a certain degree from the diet, but people often need additional supplemental vitamins. To know exactly how much vitamin D supplementation one needs, you should discuss with your healthcare provider.' Cutler said people with healthy vitamin D levels probably don't need supplementation. 'There have been many studies involving tens of thousands of people seeking to document [the] benefits of vitamin D in healthy adults with normal vitamin D levels, and no benefits have been found,' Cutler told Healthline. 'There has been no documentation of reduced cancer rates, less cardiovascular disease, increased longevity, protection from infection, or improved outcomes from COVID.'
Epoch Times
23-05-2025
- Health
- Epoch Times
Vitamin D Supplements May Slow Process Linked to Aging, New Study Says
A study published on Thursday found that people with higher vitamin D intake may be slowing a process linked to aging. In a 'VITAL is the first large-scale and long-term randomized trial to show that vitamin D supplements protect telomeres and preserve telomere length,' co-author JoAnn Manson said in a statement VITAL, they said, is a randomized, placebo-controlled, and double-blind trial of vitamin D3 and omega-3 supplementation involving U.S. females aged 55 and older and males aged 50 and older. Participants took 2,000 IU, or about 50 micrograms, of vitamin D3 per day and about 1 gram of omega-3 per day. In their research, they found that when taking vitamin D3 supplements as compared with taking a placebo, it significantly reduced the shortening of telomeres over a four-year period and was able to prevent 'the equivalent of nearly three years of aging,' the statement said. The researchers said that while several smaller-scale studies have suggested that vitamin D or omega-4 fatty acid supplements could help maintain telomeres, the results haven't been consistent. Related Stories 3/31/2025 3/10/2025 The researchers also noted that taking omega-3 supplements did not have a significant effect on the length of telomeres. Omega-3 is also commonly found in fish oil supplements and is associated with several benefits to the heart, brain, and joints. 'Our findings suggest that targeted vitamin D supplementation may be a promising strategy to counter a biological aging process, although further research is warranted,' Haidong Zhu, an author of the study who works at Augusta University's Medical College of Georgia, said in a statement. Separate research has Telomeres, which are made of sequences of DNA, prevent the ends of chromosomes from merging with other chromosomes or deteriorating over time, the researchers noted. Vitamin D can be obtained through sunlight or foods such as fatty fish, egg yolks, cheeses, orange juice, fortified cereals, and certain types of mushrooms. According to
Economic Times
22-05-2025
- Health
- Economic Times
Want to grow younger? Harvard-backed study reveals a surprising vitamin that may reverse aging at the cellular level
iStock A groundbreaking Harvard-affiliated study has found that taking a daily 2,000 IU vitamin D3 supplement may slow the biological aging process by preserving telomere length in DNA. In a discovery that could reshape how we think about aging, scientists from Brigham and Women's Hospital—a Harvard-affiliated institution—have found that a daily vitamin D3 supplement may significantly slow biological aging. Over four years, participants who took just one 2,000 IU capsule daily showed dramatically less DNA damage compared to those given a placebo. The implications are stunning: their biological markers suggested they had aged almost three years less than their counterparts. This tiny, ten-cent capsule doesn't just support your bones or boost immunity. According to the research, it might actually help preserve your telomeres—the protective caps on your DNA that tend to shrink as you age. Longer telomeres have been consistently associated with healthier aging and increased longevity. Telomeres act like the plastic tips at the ends of shoelaces, protecting chromosomes from damage. Each time a cell divides, telomeres shorten slightly, and when they become too short, the cell can no longer function properly—a process directly tied to aging. In the new study, participants who took vitamin D3 maintained significantly longer telomeres than the placebo group. After four years, their leukocyte telomere length (a key measure in white blood cells) was eight times longer. This suggests vitamin D may offer a shield against one of aging's most fundamental processes. Dr. JoAnn Manson, senior author of the study and Chief of Preventive Medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital, called the findings 'the first large-scale and long-term randomized trial to show that vitamin D supplements protect telomeres and preserve telomere length.' — NeuroscienceNew (@NeuroscienceNew) According to a report from the Daily Mail , vitamin D's benefits don't stop at the cellular level. The supplement has already been linked to reduced inflammation and lowered risks of chronic diseases such as cancer and autoimmune disorders—some of the very conditions that worsen with age. Published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition , the study included 1,031 adults who were randomly assigned to either a 2,000 IU vitamin D supplement or a placebo. While most guidelines recommend just 600 to 800 IU per day, the dose used in the study remained within the safety threshold of 4,000 IU. Dr. Haidong Zhu, the study's lead author and a molecular geneticist, noted, 'Our findings suggest that targeted vitamin D supplementation may be a promising strategy to counter a biological aging process.' While the idea of a cheap supplement that slows aging sounds almost magical, experts urge caution. Excessive intake of vitamin D can lead to calcium buildup in the blood, which may cause nausea, kidney stones, and other complications. High doses must be taken responsibly, ideally under medical supervision. There's also the matter of the study's limitations. The participant pool lacked ethnic diversity, with most subjects being white, and the mechanism by which vitamin D affects telomeres is still not fully understood. Researchers speculate it may boost levels of telomerase, the enzyme responsible for lengthening telomeres, while also reducing oxidative stress—an imbalance in the body that damages cells and accelerates aging. While the findings are preliminary, they're undeniably promising. The study was funded in part by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, a branch of the National Institutes of Health, adding credibility to the results. As researchers call for broader and longer-term studies, one thing is clear: our understanding of aging is changing. What was once seen as inevitable might, in time, be something we can slow—or perhaps even reverse—with something as simple as a pill you can pick up at your local pharmacy. In the meantime, the humble vitamin D capsule might just be the cheapest longevity hack you never knew you needed.
India Today
22-05-2025
- Health
- India Today
Not just bone health, vitamin D supplements may also slow down ageing process
Regular vitamin D supplements, known to support bone health and improve muscle strength, can also slow down a person's ageing process, according to a new findings come from a sub-study of the large-scale 'VITAL' trial and were recently published in The American Journal of Clinical at Mass General Brigham and the Medical College of Georgia have reported that vitamin D supplementation can help maintain the length of telomeres (protective caps at the ends of chromosomes that naturally shorten with age).advertisement This shortening process is linked to the development of age-related diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular issues, and certain autoimmune disorders."VITAL is the first large-scale and long-term randomised trial to show that vitamin D supplements protect telomeres and preserve telomere length,' said Dr JoAnn Manson, principal investigator of the added that earlier findings from the same trial had already shown that vitamin D can reduce inflammation and lower the risk of some chronic function much like the plastic tips at the ends of protect our chromosomes from damage, but every time a cell divides, telomeres become slightly shorter. When they get too short, the cell can no longer divide and eventually dies, a process linked to ageing and studies had hinted that vitamin D might help in protecting telomeres, but those were small and VITAL trial, by contrast, tracked over 25,000 adults across the United States for five years. The telomere sub-study focused on 1,054 participants, whose white blood cell telomere lengths were measured at the start of the study and again in the second and fourth findings showed that those who took 2,000 IU (International Units) of vitamin D3 daily experienced less telomere shortening over four years than those who took a difference was comparable to nearly three fewer years of biological compared with omega-3 fatty acid supplements, which were also tested in the trial, did not have any measurable impact on telomere Haidong Zhu, lead author and a geneticist at the Medical College of Georgia, said that the findings suggest that targeted vitamin D supplementation "may be a promising strategy to counter a biological ageing process,"However, further research is study adds to growing evidence that vitamin D is not just important for bone health, but could also help with healthy Reel
