The 9 Hallmarks of Ageing.
Discover the nine causes of why we age.
The Hallmarks define why we age.
To put it simply, ageing is cell damage. This damage leads to all kinds of symptoms, ranging from the simplest example of wrinkles to more severe diseases. If you can slow down ageing, you can actually stay healthier longer.
López-Otín and others created a framework in 2013 to describe all known researched factors that contribute to ageing. They have called them the “9 hallmarks of ageing”. The hallmarks have been proven to slow down or aggravate ageing in experimental settings.
Many scientists are now building on this framework. Molecules and lifestyle habits have already been identified that target the hallmarks of ageing and can rewind the biological clock. Our products are based on this scientific research.
We realise the Hallmarks of Ageing are a bit hard to understand for everyone that’s not a PhD in cell biology. Look at ageing as cell damage and then let’s try to chop it up. There’s 4 primary causes of cell damage. Three other causes are actually speeding up the primary causes. And then there’s 2 causes that only occur when there already is quite a lot of damage.
Primary
causes.
Genomic instability: errors in your DNA
Telomere shortening: loss of DNA protection
Epigenetic alterations: genes are wrongly turned off or on
Loss of proteostasis: accumulation of proteins inside cells
Accelerating causes.
5. Nutrient sensing: cells absorbing too many nutrients
6. Mitochondrial dysfunction: internal power plants breaking down
7. Cellular senescence: zombie cells
Too much damage.
8. Stem cell exhaustion: lower tissue maintenance and repair
9. Altered cellular communication: a vicious circles of damage
The science behind ageing is evolving fast.
Read up on the science.
+ The 9 Hallmarks of Ageing
- López-Otín et al., The hallmarks of aging, 2013, Cell 153:1194–1217 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2013.05.039