Daily Multivitamins May Slow Biological Aging by Four Months
Finn's Take· TL;DR- Daily multivitamins slowed biological aging by four months over two years in a major Harvard-led study of older adults.
- Researchers used epigenetic clocks measuring DNA methylation patterns to track cellular aging, finding benefits across five biological aging measures.
- Study shows cognitive aging slowed by two years and cancer risk reduced eight percent, though experts caution against overstating lifespan claims.
Breakthrough Research Reveals Cellular Benefits
A groundbreaking study published in Nature Medicine has found that taking a daily multivitamin for two years can slow biological aging by approximately four months. Using data from a large randomized clinical trial of older adults, researchers from Harvard and Mass General Brigham evaluated the effects of taking a daily multivitamin over the course of two years on five measures of biological aging and found a slowing equivalent to about four months of aging .
The research, part of the COcoa Supplement and Multivitamin Outcomes Study (COSMOS), analyzed blood samples from 958 healthy participants with an average age of 70. Compared to the placebo-only group, people in the multivitamin group had slowing in all five epigenetic clocks, including statistically significant slowing in the two clocks that are predictive of mortality .
What makes this study particularly compelling is its focus on biological aging rather than chronological age. Whereas chronological age measures how much time has passed since birth, biological age reflects wear and tear on the body at a cellular level. The two don't necessarily match up. For example, a person might be 50 years old chronologically yet have a biological age of 47 or 54 depending on factors such as genetics, lifestyle habits and medical history .
How Scientists Measured the Anti-Aging Effect
The researchers used sophisticated biomarkers called epigenetic clocks to track aging at the cellular level. To calculate people's biological ages at the time of each sample, the team analysed five epigenetic 'clocks' in the blood samples. These clocks are biomarkers that measure DNA methylation — patterns of molecular tags on DNA — at specific sites in the genome. Methylation levels increase or decrease at particular sites in a relatively predictable manner with age .
Additionally, people who were biologically older than their actual age at the start of the trial benefited the most . This suggests that multivitamins might be particularly valuable for individuals whose bodies are aging faster than expected based on their chronological age.
The Bigger Picture of Multivitamin Benefits
This latest finding adds to growing evidence supporting multivitamin use in older adults. Previous research from the same COSMOS study showed cognitive benefits, with researchers estimating that taking a daily multivitamin slowed global cognitive aging by the equivalent of two years compared to the placebo .
Results from another large randomized controlled trial showed that multivitamins "reduced total cancer risk by 8% and eye disease, cataracts, by 9%" . These findings have convinced some researchers to change their own habits, with study co-author Howard Sesso noting that the Physicians' Health Study results convinced him to start taking a multivitamin after he turned 50 .
What This Means for Your Health Decisions
While the results are promising, experts urge caution about interpreting the findings. Howard Sesso, the associate director of preventive medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School and the study's senior author, cautioned that the results don't mean a multivitamin adds four months to a person's lifespan. "What it means is that your trajectory of health should stand to benefit," he said .
Epigenetic clocks are rarely used as a clinical diagnostic, and the COSMOS study results alone are probably not enough to be used in clinical decision-making. "People should not read this study and think, oh, I should take a multivitamin. And the reason for that is there's a critical piece of evidence that's missing," Belsky says .
The research represents an important step forward in understanding how simple interventions might support healthy aging. As populations worldwide continue aging, finding accessible ways to maintain cellular health becomes increasingly valuable. While more research is needed to fully understand the clinical implications, this study suggests that the humble multivitamin may have more benefits than previously recognized.