Tier 1 — highest

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

Heike A Bischoff-Ferrari, Stephanie Gängler, Maud Wieczorek, Daniel W Belsky, Joanne Ryan, Reto W Kressig, Hannes B Stähelin, Robert Theiler, Bess Dawson-Hughes, René Rizzoli, Bruno Vellas, Laure Rouch, Sophie Guyonnet, Andreas Egli, E John Orav, Walter Willett, Steve Horvath
Nature aging 2025 5(3):376-385

Bibliography

PubMed
PMID 39900648
PubMed Central
PMC11922767
DOI
10.1038/s43587-024-00793-y
Trial registry
View on ClinicalTrials.gov Registered trial — results not yet published in a peer-reviewed journal.
Funding
Support is recorded from Swiss National Science Foundation, Schweizerischer Nationalfonds zur Förderung der Wissenschaftlichen Forschung (Swiss National Science Foundation). See the original publication for grant and material-support details.
Competing interests
The publication includes author disclosures; consult the linked source for the individual relationships and their relevance.

Study snapshot

DesignPost hoc biomarker analysis of a randomized factorial trial
ModelHuman participants
Sample777 participants from the DO-HEALTH trial
InterventionD3 2,000 IU/day, omega-3 1 g/day and/or home exercise
Duration3 years
EndpointsDNA methylation measures of biological aging

What the study showed, in plain terms

This publication examines dna methylation measures of biological aging. Study population or evidence base: 777 participants from the DO-HEALTH trial. Intervention or exposure: D3 2,000 IU/day, omega-3 1 g/day and/or home exercise.

Key findings

Omega-3 showed small favorable effects on several aging clocks. Combining omega-3, vitamin D and exercise produced an additive effect on PhenoAge.

What this study can and cannot tell us

Post hoc surrogate-biomarker analysis. The combination result does not establish an independent D3 effect across clocks or a measured increase in lifespan.

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