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A new study has found evidence that alcohol may accelerate biological aging.
Researchers from Oxford Population Health have published results from a new genetic-based analysis which suggest that alcohol directly accelerates aging by damaging DNA in telomeres.
In the new study, researchers from Oxford Population Health examined the association between alcohol intake and telomere length, using data from over 245,000 people taking part in the UK Biobank project. To investigate any potential causation, the team used a genetic technique known as Mendelian Randomization (MR), which looks at variations in certain genes – in this case, some that had previously been linked to alcohol consumption and alcohol use disorders.
In the MR analysis, the team found a clear link between high alcohol intake and shorter telomeres – drinking 32 units of alcohol (about 11 glasses of wine) per week showed telomere shortening equivalent to around three years of aging, compared to those who drank 10 units. People genetically predicted to have alcohol use disorder were also found to have about three years’ worth of aging damage to their telomeres.
The team backed up this MR analysis with observational studies of participants’ reported weekly drinking habits. This showed similar results – people who drank more than 29 alcohol units (roughly 10 large glasses of wine) per week showed telomere shortening equivalent to between one and two years of aging, compared to people who drank less than six units of alcohol (about two glasses of wine) per week.
The research was published in the journal Molecular Psychiatry.
