Daily Multivitamin Supplementation Slows Biological Aging by Up to 5 Months in Randomized Trial
核心洞察
A randomized clinical trial of 958 older adults found that daily multivitamin (搜索) supplementation significantly slowed biological aging (搜索) by 2.7 to 5.1 months over two years compared to placebo.
The COSMOS trial demonstrated that multivitamins reduced aging markers on two epigenetic clocks (PCPhenoAge (搜索) and PCGrimAge (搜索)) that are associated with mortality risk.
Participants who were biologically older than their chronological age at baseline showed the greatest benefit from multivitamin (搜索) supplementation.
A large randomized clinical trial has found that daily multivitamin (搜索) supplementation can slow biological aging (搜索) in older adults by up to five months over two years, with the greatest benefits observed in participants who were already experiencing accelerated aging (搜索) at the study's onset.
The research, published in Nature Medicine and led by investigators at Mass General Brigham (搜索), analyzed data from 958 participants in the COcoa Supplement Multivitamins Outcomes Study (COSMOS) with an average age of 70.2 years. The study represents the first large-scale randomized clinical trial to examine the effects of common dietary supplements on epigenetic aging markers.
Epigenetic Clock Analysis Reveals Significant Benefits
Researchers tracked biological aging (搜索) using five epigenetic clocks, which estimate aging by measuring DNA methylation (搜索) patterns in blood samples. These molecular markers can indicate how quickly the body is aging at the cellular level, independent of chronological age.
Participants were randomly assigned to receive either a daily multivitamin (搜索) (Centrum Silver (搜索) formulation), cocoa extract, both supplements, or placebos over two years. Blood samples were collected at baseline and after one and two years of treatment.
The multivitamin (搜索) group showed slower aging across all five epigenetic clocks compared to placebo, with two measures reaching statistical significance. The PCPhenoAge (搜索) clock showed a yearly decrease of 0.214 years, while PCGrimAge (搜索) decreased by 0.113 years annually. This translates to approximately 2.7 to 5.1 months less biological aging (搜索) after two years of supplementation.
"The most significant findings were for two-year changes in two biological clocks related to mortality comparing daily multivitamin (搜索) use versus placebo," said senior author Howard Sesso, associate director of the Division of Preventive Medicine in the Mass General Brigham (搜索) Department of Medicine.
Greatest Impact in Accelerated Aging Population
A particularly notable finding emerged when researchers examined participants based on their baseline biological age relative to chronological age. Those who were biologically older than their actual age at the study's start benefited most from multivitamin (搜索) supplementation.
Among participants with accelerated aging (搜索) on the PCGrimAge (搜索) measure at baseline, the multivitamin (搜索) significantly reduced the rise in that aging marker over two years. Similar patterns appeared in other clocks, though not all interactions reached statistical significance.
"We were intrigued by this finding, which indicates that older participants who initially presented with greater biological aging (搜索) versus their chronological age at baseline benefited more," Sesso explained. "It suggests that by identifying those with more accelerated biological aging, there would be greater improvements in biological aging through these epigenetic clocks among those taking a simple daily multivitamin (搜索) compared with a placebo."
Multivitamin Formulation and Mechanism
The study used the standard Centrum Silver (搜索) multivitamin (搜索) formulation available in the United States during the mid-2010s when the COSMOS trial began. The supplement contained vitamins A, C, D3, E, and K, B vitamins (搜索), and minerals including magnesium, zinc, and calcium, among other nutrients.
"It contains all essential vitamins and minerals at lower amounts, along with a few other nutrients," Sesso noted. "Whether the COSMOS trial findings extend to similar broad-based multivitamin (搜索) formulations is an important question; intuitively, it may, but we simply don't have data to address it directly."
Interestingly, cocoa extract, which had shown promising cardiovascular benefits in earlier COSMOS analyses, did not demonstrate the same biological aging (搜索) benefits and actually increased one aging marker (PCPhenoAge (搜索)), though researchers suggested this may reflect statistical variation rather than a harmful effect.
Clinical Implications and Future Research
The findings align with previous COSMOS trial results showing multivitamin (搜索) benefits for cognition, cancer prevention, and cataract risk reduction, though the researchers emphasized that this analysis alone does not prove that multivitamins extend life or prevent disease.
"Living longer is one thing; living better is just as important," Sesso said. "More clinical trials are needed under the effects of lifestyle and pharmacologic interventions on biological aging (搜索) captured through epigenetics and other biomarkers."
Dr. Zeeshan Khan, chief of geriatric medicine at Hackensack Meridian Jersey Shore University Medical Center (搜索), who was not involved in the study, expressed cautious optimism about the findings. "Now we have a high quality study which has found a safe, accessible, and affordable intervention that may slow down a key epigenetic aging clock," he said.
However, Khan noted several areas requiring further investigation: "First, we need long-term follow-up on clinical outcomes: do those patients with a slowed down epigenetic clock actually experience fewer age-related diseases. Next, what was the mechanism of action? Was it a specific vitamin or mineral in the supplement?"
Study Limitations and Considerations
The research included several limitations that temper the conclusions. The study population was predominantly non-Hispanic white older adults, limiting the generalizability of results to diverse populations. The trial duration of two years also leaves questions about longer-term effects and whether extended multivitamin (搜索) use would produce stronger benefits.
Additionally, the epigenetic clocks capture only part of the aging process, and measurement error in DNA methylation (搜索) assays may have affected the results. The researchers did not adjust for multiple comparisons, arguing that the clocks are highly correlated, though this approach may increase the risk of false positive findings.
The research team plans to continue investigating additional epigenetic clocks from their DNA methylation (搜索) data and examine similar effects in other large randomized clinical trials testing dietary supplements. Co-author Yanbin Dong, director of Georgia Prevention Institute (搜索) at the Medical College of Georgia (搜索), noted, "We plan to do follow-up research to determine if the slowing of biological aging (搜索), observed through these five epigenetic clocks, and additional or new ones, persists after the trial ends."