COVID-19 pandemic stress linked to accelerated biological aging in adolescents

A longitudinal study conducted by researchers from the Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry and four German universities suggests that stress and social isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic may have accelerated biological aging in adolescents.

Published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), the study analyzed DNA methylation in over 1,000 participants in Germany, including children, adolescents, and young adults. By comparing saliva DNA samples taken before the first lockdown in March 2020 to those taken between winter 2021 and spring 2022, researchers used epigenetic clocks to measure changes in biological age.

The findings indicate that the pandemic accelerated epigenetic aging across all studied age groups. This effect was most pronounced in adolescents, where perceived stress and restrictions on social interactions, such as the inability to meet friends, showed a strong association with biological aging. Lead author Alicia Schowe noted that adolescence may be particularly sensitive to such stress due to the physical and emotional changes of puberty and the impact of social restrictions.