Can semaglutide slow down the ageing process?
There are early encouraging signs that semaglutide may be able to slow biological ageing, but the clinical evidence comes from one small study in people with HIV. Until studies in healthy older adults have been completed, it is too early to use semaglutide for this purpose outside its current approved uses.
Semaglutide (the active ingredient in Ozempic) may be able to slow down the ageing process, but the evidence is limited. One study in 84 people with HIV found that, after 32 weeks, participants were biologically 2.2 to 4.9 years younger, and aged 9% more slowly than the group that did not receive the treatment. These were, however, people with HIV, not healthy average adults.
How semaglutide might achieve this has largely been studied in cells and animals, not in people. Those studies point to less chronic inflammation and better cellular housekeeping as possible explanations, but this has not yet been confirmed in people.
Studies in people are underway, but results are not yet available. For example, a small study in 20 people aged 65 and older who are overweight is looking at effects on muscle mass and markers of inflammation. No conclusions have been reached yet.
It is too early to recommend semaglutide as an anti-ageing treatment. There are no completed studies in healthy older adults, and it is unknown whether the medicine is safe for this purpose over the long term.
The strongest evidence comes from one study in 84 people with HIV, analysed after the fact as part of a larger study: those are not ideal conditions for a firm conclusion, and how widely the findings apply is limited. Beyond that, the answer draws on several review articles and studies in cells and animals. The researchers behind those cell and animal studies themselves note that the results have not yet been shown to apply to people. Dedicated studies in people focused on healthy older adults are still in their early stages.
How does ageing work and how can you slow it down?
Ageing is well described biologically, but there are no proven means of genuinely slowing it in humans yet. For now, focus on what works: sufficient exercise, a protein-rich diet and avoiding overeating.
Can you really lower your biological age, and does research support this?
There are promising hints that biological age is measurable and perhaps steerable, but this has not been proven. Wait for larger studies in people before basing major decisions on this.
Does plasma exchange (plasmapheresis) work against ageing?
There are initial, cautiously positive indications from one small study, but it is too small and too influenced by commercial interests to draw any conclusions at this stage. Wait for larger, independent studies before considering this treatment.
Can nucleotides lower your biological age?
NAD+ supplements measurably raise NAD+ levels in your blood and, in one study, prevented biological age from rising, but did not actively lower it. The evidence is still too thin for firm conclusions, but 600-900 mg of NMN per day appears safe and also improved walking ability in that same study.
Can epigenetic reprogramming reverse ageing?
Animal studies show that epigenetic reprogramming measurably reverses ageing. That step has not yet been taken in people, because the most widely used method carries a cancer risk. Exercise and a Mediterranean diet, however, have already been shown to influence biological age.
Does NAD+ supplementation slow biological ageing?
NAD+ supplements reliably raise your blood levels. Whether that also slows biological ageing has not yet been demonstrated in people.