While high sugar intake was associated with accelerated biological aging, adherence to a nutrient-rich diet, in particular the Mediterranean diet, related to a significantly lower epigenetic age demonstrating the negative impact of sugar on cellular longevity.
The researchers found that diets high in essential nutrients and low in added sugars could reduce cellular aging. Meanwhile, high sugar intake accelerated biological aging highlighting the importance of a nutrient-rich diet for longevity.
The study helps advance our understanding of why sugar is so detrimental to health, notes the study co-author Elissa Epel, PhD, a professor in the UCSF Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences.
“We knew that high sugar levels were associated with poor metabolic health and early disease, perhaps more than any other dietary factor, - Epel says. - We now know that accelerated epigenetic aging underlies this association, and this is likely one of the many ways that high sugar intake limits healthy longevity.”
The women participated in the study reported consuming an average of 61.5 grams of added sugar per day, although the range was wide, from 2.7 grams to 316 grams of sugar per day. A bar of milk chocolate contains about 25 g of sugar, while a small can of cola contains about 39 g. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration recommend that adults consume no more than 50 g of sugar per day.
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