Aging: Omega-3 elixir of youth, stops epigenetic clocks

How "young inside" do you feel? Lifestyle can help you slow down your aging, letting your age run and stopping, instead, your biological age. Ingredients not to be missed in your diet include Omega 3, the good fats from fish.

Taking Omega 3 slows biological aging, and their effect can be enhanced by vitamin D and physical activity. This is revealed in a study published in Nature Aging by a team of researchers led by Heike Bischoff-Ferrari, professor of Geriatric Medicine at the University of Zurich, Switzerland.

The one by Bischoff-Ferrari and colleagues is the first study to have used so-called epigenetic clocks to assess the aging process. According to the data collected, to be up to 4 months younger biologically, one only needs to take 1 gram of Omega 3 per day for 3 years-a dosage easily achievable with sufficiently concentrated, high-quality Omega 3 supplements.

What are epigenetic clocks?

The passage of time leaves traces in our DNA. One of the best known and most studied is methylation, a chemical modification that does not alter the genetic code, but can affect gene expression and is exploited by epigenetic clocks to compare registry age with biological age.

These epigenetic clocks are algorithms (i.e., computational schemes) based precisely on measuring genome methylation. Bischoff-Ferrari and colleagues have used four of them:

• the first 3 are second-generation epigenetic clocks that associate methylation with mortality risk;
• the fourth is a third-generation epigenetic clock that associates methylation with the health status of the human body's systems.

In addition, the researchers considered information obtained from first-generation epigenetic clocks that associate DNA methylation with age.

Omega 3 against aging

The potential of Omega 3 against aging had already emerged from previous studies. For example, in 2013 Janice Kiecolt-Glaser and colleagues at The Ohio State University College of Medicine in Columbus, US, had associated the reduction in the ratio of Omega 6 to Omega 3 with increased telomere length (the protective ends of chromosomes, which shorten just as cells age).

Other research had associated Omega 3s with DNA methylation and reduced infections (- 13%) and falls (- 10%) in the elderly population. Not only that, when taken in combination with vitamin D and physical activity, these fats, known allies of health, have also been associated with reductions in the incidence of aggressive forms of cancer (- 61%) and pre-fragility (- 39%), a condition in which at least one or two of the criteria used to diagnose true frailty (weight loss, extreme fatigue, low physical activity, slow pace and reduced strength) are present.

In this new study, Bischoff-Ferrari and collaborators aimed to confirm at the molecular level the effectiveness of Omega 3 alone or in combination with vitamin D and physical activity.

The study

The data analyzed were those concerning nearly 800 of the 2157 individuals, all aged 70 years and older, involved in the DO-HEALTH study. This study had included 8 experimental groups:

• the former took 1 gram of Omega 3 and 2,000 IU (International Units) of vitamin D3 each day and combined them with a physical activity program of exercising for 30 minutes three times a week;
• The second only took Omega 3 and vitamin D;
• The third took vitamin D and exercised; 
• The fourth took Omega 3 and trained;
• The fifth only took vitamin D;
• The sixth only took Omega 3;
• The seventh has only been practicing;
• The eighth just took a placebo. 

The study lasted three years. "When it comes to measuring biological age, there is no universally recognized standard," Bischoff-Ferrari explained. "We analyzed the best currently validated epigenetic clocks."

Findings published in Nature Aging showed a "specific and noteworthy" epigenetic response to Omega 3, corresponding to a slowing of aging that over 3 years can result in people appearing biologically 4 months younger than their peers.

Benefiting the most were participants in whom initial Omega 3 levels were lower. "This suggests that baseline nutritional status might influence the epigenetic response," explain the authors of the publication.

Slowing aging to prevent chronic diseases

Advancing age is a major risk factor for several chronic diseases, but aging healthily is possible. The results of this study support the hypothesis that chronic diseases can be prevented by slowing biological aging, pointing to Omega 3, alone or in combination with vitamin D and physical activity, as one of the tools at our disposal to do so.

Taken individually, Omega 3, vitamin D, and physical activity affect biological aging by different mechanisms that, when combined, act in complementary ways, allowing for a greater effect.

The benefits of an approach based on a combination of physical activity and supplementation of these nutrients depend on the baseline nutritional status, suggesting the need to tailor supplementation protocols.

How to take Omega 3 against aging

The Omega 3s taken by the individuals involved in this study were the two biologically active forms (eicosapentaenoic acid - EPA - and docosahexaenoic acid - DHA) found in marine sources. Specifically, participants received Omega 3s obtained from algae totaling 330 mg of EPA and 660 mg of DHA per day.

Taking such dosages with food alone is not easy, especially if, for a variety of reasons, you do not eat fish or eat very little fish. You can cope with this difficulty with marine-derived supplements made from fish, krill or microalgae.

The best choice you can make is to rely on products that are highly concentrated (to reduce the number of capsules you need to take each day) and certified for purity and freshness. This way you will be taking Omega 3 free of substances that are potentially dangerous to your health, such as heavy metals and dioxins that, unfortunately, can contaminate the fish we bring to our tables (and the products derived from them).

If your goal is to fight aging, combine these fats with other useful ingredients, such as natural antioxidants and allies in skin wellness and energy metabolism.

Discover the best Omega 3 supplements on the market by visiting our Shop and keep up to date* on the benefits of these fats by continuing to read our Blog!

Bibliographic references:

Bischoff-Ferrari HA, Gängler S, Wieczorek M, Belsky DW, Ryan J, Kressig RW, Stähelin HB, Theiler R, Dawson-Hughes B, Rizzoli R, Vellas B, Rouch L, Guyonnet S, Egli A, Orav EJ, Willett W, Horvath S. Individual and additive effects of vitamin D, omega-3 and exercise on DNA methylation clocks of biological aging in older adults from the DO-HEALTH trial. Nat Aging. 2025 Feb 3. doi: 10.1038/s43587-024-00793-y

UZH News. Omega-3s Can Slow Down Aging Process. 04/02/2025. Last viewed: 13/03/25