[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]It’s hardly a secret that a bout of the blues or a nerve-wracking week of work can make you feel and perhaps even
look as if you’ve aged a decade in a few days’ time. Both can rob you of everything from your vibrancy to a good night’s sleep and leave you feeling utterly depleted (and well beyond your years).
Yet, chronic conditions of depression and anxiety have a complicated relationship with aging. On the one hand, persistent gloominess and angst can hasten biological aging and place you at a higher risk of age-related health conditions. On the other hand, recent research indicates that accelerated biological aging in and of itself may
heighten your vulnerability to developing anxiety and depression.
Intrigued? Let’s dive into the topic together so that you know precisely what to do to mitigate your risk of all three.
What is depression?
Before we jump into the connection between depression, anxiety and aging, it’s important to get a handle on what depression is—especially since the phrase is often lobbied about and quite frequently used to describe a completely natural spell of melancholy.
Put simply, depression is characterized as a mental health condition that
adversely influences how you see yourself, the way you act and the manner in which you perceive the world. That may sound “normal” enough—we all have times when we’re down on ourselves and our circumstances, view life with a tinge of negativity, or feel sad. But when depression lasts for more than two weeks and includes symptoms such as losing interest in activities you once loved and feeling hopeless, depression may affect your relationships, your work performance, your commitment to your passions and your day-to-day functioning.
What is anxiety?
Anxiety, meanwhile, is chiefly distinguished by a continual sense of dread.
Just like with depression, occasionally experiencing worry and fear is a huge part of the human condition. With anxiety, though, such feelings are not only so intense that they impact nearly every major domain of your life—like work, family, relationships and hobbies—but they also carry on for six months or longer. To add insult to injury, anxiety is often accompanied by a range of physiological symptoms that can seem downright debilitating, including a racing pulse, restlessness and vertigo.
What is the correlation between depression, anxiety and aging?
Ever notice a new wrinkle emerge after a particularly distressing episode in life? Or find a gray hair after a week of wanting to
pull out your hair?
It’s not just a coincidence: A large body of research reveals a direct connection between depression, stress and premature aging. A few of the most common ways these mental health conditions manifest include:
- Loss of skin elasticity
- Dry, dull skin
- Fine lines and wrinkles
- Hair loss
- Graying hair
- Dental damage
- Weight fluctuations (either loss or gain)
- Physiological effects, such as headaches, joint pain and back problems
- Cognitive symptoms, like trouble concentrating, impaired memory and difficulty making decisions
Additionally, and of even greater concern, depression and anxiety may make you more susceptible to a host of health conditions, including chronic pulmonary disease (COPD), cardiovascular disease and cognitive decline.
Why do depression and anxiety advance aging?
Depression and anxiety don’t exist solely in your mind: They can also take a grave toll on your physical systems.
A 2023 study published in
Cell Metabolism, for example, found that
anxiety expedites biological aging by prompting the production of cortisol and adrenaline—two hormones that, in excess, or generated over a prolonged period, can provoke systemic inflammation and cause cellular damage.
What’s more, stress may shorten your telomeres, which operate as “caps” on your chromosomes and shield your cells from harm. (Indeed, shorter telomeres have been linked to an increased risk of
neurodegenerative diseases, chronic illnesses and early death.) Together, these physical changes may result in accelerated aging, and serve as a palpable reminder that a hectic year with scant sleep really
does affect how you move, act, look and feel.
Ditto for depression. In 2023, researchers at the UConn Center on Aging discovered that
adults with depression biologically aged at a faster clip than their non-depressed peers and experienced an elevated risk to poor cardiovascular health, high blood pressure and reduced cognitive function.
What the new research suggests
To some, this may all seem novel, but we’ve long known that depression and aging can promote aging, both on the cosmetic and physical level.
And yet, the new data we touched upon above illustrates that the inverse is also possible: According to a 2023 study conducted at the Peking University School of Public Health and the Columbia Mailman School of Public Health, advanced biological aging may
cause depression and anxiety. In fact, findings show that participants who were “biologically” older than their peers had a six percent higher chance of developing depression and anxiety.
You may be asking,
what is biological aging? Good question:
- Chronological age refers to the actual (and unchangeable) number of years you’ve been alive, while your
- Biological age pertains to the physiological age of your tissues and cells—meaning, you can look and feel far younger than you truly are, or older than the number of candles on your birthday cake
This new study may seem alarming at first, particularly for older adults who are already more vulnerable to these mental health conditions. But it also underscores something fantastic: That you, and the choices you make, have a tremendous amount of sway on your biological age. In other words, while you have no control over your date of birth, you
do have the power to make positive tweaks that will slow, if not reverse, your biological age—and decrease your risk of depression and anxiety while you’re at it.
How to lower your biological age, naturally
True: The rate at which we age hinges in part on our genetics, which is completely outside of our control as well.
Nonetheless, a growing body of research in the field of epigenetics (or how our environment influences our genes) confirms that lifestyle choices and a wide range of behaviors play a pivotal role in how swiftly, or how
slowly, we biologically age.
Jeffrey Bland Ph.D., called the father of functional medicine, once said that we can “bathe our genes in nutrients,” to positively impact how they are expressed.
To that end, consider these top tips on turning back the hands of time:
Adopt an age-defying diet
Nutrition and longevity are intimately, intricately connected. A myriad of foods can contribute to premature aging, such as:
- Sugary drinks and sweets, which can launch the process of glycation and ultimately curtail collagen synthesis
- Alcohol, which may not only damage organs (including the most critical one of all: your brain) but also harm your telomeres
- Fried foods, which can create free radicals and result in oxidative stress
- Trans fats, which can cause inflammation
Luckily, just as many foods encourage a balanced, healthy gut microbiome and overall wellness—and the
youth-promoting perks that arrive with it. These nutrient-rich eats (and drinks) include:
Up-level your exercise regimen
In case you needed more of a reason to dodge a sedentary lifestyle: A study featured in the
American Journal of Epidemiology found that inactivity (or sitting for ten or more hours per day) added an estimated eight years of biological aging to women’s lives.
At the same time, sufficient exercise can shave years off your biological age; indeed, some experts argue that consistent physical movement is, hands-down,
the savviest way to delay the physiological changes of aging. This is thanks to exercise’s capacity to:
- Lengthen telomeres
- Slow mental decline
- Boost immunity
- Increase circulation
- Bolster bone mineral content
- Lower blood pressure
- Enhance sleep quality
- Brighten your mood (and that alone may inspire you to make wholesome life choices)
The type of exercise you choose is entirely up to you.
Yoga, swimming, walking, resistance training —all can help you reset the clock on your biological age, as long as you move at a moderate to intense pace.
Make restorative sleep non-negotiable
Sleep deprivation has a hand in accelerated biological aging, with one study pointing to the fact that those who routinely slept less than five hours per night had a cardiovascular age 5.1 years beyond their chronological age. Another study out of UCLA determined that a
single night of inadequate sleep could age cells. Further, unsound sleep can make you more susceptible to developing depression and anxiety
and compound its symptoms.
With this in mind, treat sleep with as much care as you would anything else of importance in life, like your job, romantic relationship, or children. In turn, you’ll reap a bevy of benefits, from enriched immune function to weight maintenance and a
more satisfying sex life—which, come to think of it, sounds like one’s 20s.
Add herbal remedies to your daily routine
Herbs have long held a vital role in nourishing health. Thirty years of research confirms that
several herbs naturally promote wellness and the healthy aging advantages (like
more energy) that come with it, namely:
- Ginkgo biloba†
- Ginseng†
- Astragalus†
Embrace smart stress-busting habits
To recap: Stress can stimulate biological aging, while biological aging can precipitate anxiety and depression. Either way, learning to cope with stress is key to keeping premature aging and mental health conditions at bay.
This looks differently for everyone, but every strategy ought to involve ditching destructive “go tos” like smoking, alcohol, overeating and binging on television (which tend to cause more dysregulation in the long run) and welcoming mindfulness-centered activities that calm your nervous system. This could be as simple as spending a few minutes petting your pup or cat, or as complex as writing down the potential solutions for what’s causing you stress before taking a long, meditative walk in nature.
And if you do intuit that you’re experiencing anxiety and/or depression, regardless of your chronological
and biological age? By all means, seek out guidance from a professional. They can lead in you in the right direction—and help put you on a path toward peace, happiness and longevity.
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