Pandemic stress linked to accelerated aging in adolescents — ScienceAlert

In Germany, researchers found a link between stress experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic and signs of accelerated epigenetic aging in adolescents. As ScienceAlert reports, the scientists analyzed saliva samples from more than 1,000 participants aged approximately 8 to 29.

Data compared before and after lockdowns

The study used data from the TwinLife Epigenetic Change Satellite project. Samples from children aged 8–10, adolescents aged 14–16, and adults aged 20–29 were collected before Germany’s first lockdown in March 2020 and then collected again in 2021–2022, after the second lockdown.

Scientists assessed age-related changes in DNA methylation using four epigenetic clocks. Three of the four methods — PedBE, GrimAge2, and DunedinPACE — recorded a statistically significant increase in indicators of accelerated biological aging or its pace compared with pre-pandemic levels in the overall sample. Each of these tools detected such changes in two age groups. The PedBE clock was used only for children and adolescents.

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The clearest link was found in adolescents

Only one of the epigenetic clocks used showed accelerated aging in children. The authors suggest that the other tools may not be sufficiently sensitive or fully adapted to assess such changes in childhood.

When the DNA analysis results were compared with self-assessments of experiences during the pandemic, a link between perceived stress and accelerated biological aging was found only among adolescents. Stronger signs of such aging were recorded in those who perceived restrictions on freedom and separation from people important to them more acutely, although the results depended on the specific epigenetic clock.

At the same time, the strongest factors associated with accelerated epigenetic aging across all age groups were a higher body mass index and exposure to smoking. The researchers noted that a sedentary lifestyle and weight gain during the pandemic may also have partly affected changes in GrimAge2 and DunedinPACE indicators. Further observations are needed to determine how long these changes last and how they relate to future health outcomes.