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A simple lifestyle adjustment could potentially slow down the body’s biological aging process, according to new research.
The study, published in the journal Aging, investigated how a diet change and easy exercise regimen affected men between the ages of 50 and 74 over a three-month period.
Researchers designed a clinical trial involving 48 overweight men in Japan. Over a 12-week period, half of the participants followed a strictly structured wellness routine, while the other half maintained their usual habits.
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For the intervention group, the routine required consuming 100 grams of plain yogurt every day.
This group also received individualized dietary counseling that advised them to curb overeating, avoid excessive snacking and cut out sugary drinks.
They were also instructed to walk or use a stepper machine for roughly 30 minutes a day, at least three days each week.
To measure the impact of these changes, the scientists collected blood samples from all participants before and after the study, and also analyzed DNA for chemical changes that act as indicators of cellular age.
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Specifically, they used a measurement tool called DunedinPACE. Rather than assessing a person’s chronological age in years, this tool calculates the precise rate at which an individual’s body is currently aging.
The men who consumed the probiotic yogurt, adjusted their diets and exercised showed a statistically significant reduction in their pace of aging compared to the control group, the researchers said.
On average, the speed of their biological aging slowed by approximately 2.2%. This reduction is roughly comparable to the slowing of biological aging observed in a previous two-year U.S. study, in which participants reduced their daily calorie intake by 25%.
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This reduction in aging speed happened independently of weight loss , meaning it did not directly correlate with changes in the participants’ body mass index or the exact number of exercise sessions they logged.
The researchers also recorded a noticeable improvement in a specific DNA marker that is linked to kidney function.
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Because this study combined three distinct factors — probiotics, diet and exercise — the authors concluded that the anti-aging benefits cannot be attributed to any single component. Instead, the slowed aging rate appears to be the result of a combined effect.
The researchers also acknowledged clear limitations of the study, including its small sample size and short duration. Also, the participant pool was restricted to overweight men of a single nationality.
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More research is needed to determine whether these short-term biological shifts can translate into permanent, long-term health benefits, the study stated.
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