Effects of a Diet & Lifestyle intervention on Biological Aging

The regulation of the human genome by the epigenome is now regarded as a cornerstone, heritable, physiologic process, playing a key role in phenotypic expression of health and disease. DNA methylation is a well-researched, primary epigenetic process that has been used to establish biological age assessments, namely DNA methylation “clocks,” which act as possible surrogate markers of age-related morbidity and mortality risk.
The potential to slow biological age as measured by these clocks is just beginning to be explored. Yet emerging research suggests that it is possible to do just that. This has profound implications for the growing health-related economic and social challenges of our rapidly aging population. A 2021 Nature Aging paper states that a slowdown in aging that results in one year of increased lifespan would save 38 trillion dollars in health care spending, and a deceleration by ten years would save 367 trillion dollars.
This presentation will cover:
– Overview of epigenetics
– The state of the research on DNA methylation and biological age reversal
– Dietary and lifestyle interventions that have been shown, in both animals and humans, to favorably impact DNA methylation and biological age
– Plant phytochemical favorable effect on DNA methylation
– The intersection between metabolic and epigenomic methylation pathways and why we may need to be judicious in our use of high dose methyl donor supplements
– Biological embedding and the epigenetic impact of trauma over generations