new study from China has found that men and women age in strikingly different ways -- and the clues lie hidden in the results of everyday blood tests and health checkups.
The study, recently published in the journal Nature Aging, was jointly conducted by researchers from the China National Center for Bioinformation (CNCB), under the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), the Institute of Zoology of CAS, Xuanwu Hospital of Capital Medical University and other institutes.
Researchers looked at health data from more than 104,000 adults across China, aged 18 to 98. They focused on 172 common measurements, like weight, cholesterol, and blood sugar. From this, they built special "aging clocks" to show when human bodies go through the biggest changes over time.
They found that for men, the most important turning point came between ages 35 and 45. During this decade, their metabolism shifted noticeably -- body mass index went up, along with triglycerides and cholesterol. For women, the big change happened later, between 55 and 65, around the time of menopause. At that stage, women experienced strong hormonal changes, along with rising fat and cholesterol levels. Yet despite these distinct aging trajectories, the physical differences between men and women tended to diminish as they grew older.
The study also showed that certain substances in our blood -- including glucose, lipids, uric acid, and two tumor-related markers called CEA and HE4 -- build up as we age and are linked to faster biological aging. To test this, the scientists exposed human blood vessel cells to higher levels of these substances in the lab. The cells began to show clear signs of senescence, suggesting that these factors are not just markers of aging but may actually help cause it.
But there is some encouraging news. The researchers found that some aging effects might be reversible. For example, a common diabetes drug called metformin helped protect cells from the aging damage caused by high glucose levels. In another experiment, mice that were switched from a high-fat diet back to a normal diet showed clear improvements in liver aging.
"This suggests that lowering metabolic stress -- by improving diet or controlling blood glucose -- could be a potential strategy to slow down aging," said Xiong Muzhao, a researcher from CNCB.
The findings suggest that reducing age-related metabolic burden may be a promising strategy for promoting healthy aging. They also highlight the importance of sex-specific assessment and intervention throughout the lifespan, said Li Jiaming, a researcher from CNCB.
