The study, published in the journal Nature Aging, involved 108 people aged between 25 and 75 years. Participants had blood tests and other tests every few months for several years. The resulting data allowed scientists to track age-related changes in more than 135 thousand different molecules and microbes and collect nearly 250 billion different data points.
The results showed that the levels of most molecules and microbes do not change gradually, but suddenly. In a person’s life, two periods of rapid changes that affect health have been identified: at 44 years of age and at 60 years of age.
According to scientists, in people over 40 years old, significant changes were observed in the number of molecules related to lipid metabolism, cardiovascular diseases, skin and muscles.
In people over 60 years, changes related to carbohydrate and caffeine metabolism, immune regulation and kidney function have been added.
The study explains why the risk of certain diseases increases significantly with age. These include Alzheimer’s disease and other types of dementia.
At the same time, scientists could not understand what causes sudden changes at this particular age. They plan to continue research in this regard.
