Lowering body temperature as when animals hibernate may help slow ageing, scientists say
Reducing body temperature by entering a torpor-like state, like hibernation in animals, could keep you younger, a study in mice suggests
Lowering our body temperature could help stall the signs of ageing, tests on mice suggest.
And entering a hibernation-like state could work better than anti-ageing creams and sweat-inducing workouts for older people who want to stay looking young for longer, the scientists who conducted the research believe.
The research was carried out at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s (MIT) Whitehead Institute and Harvard Medical School – both in the US state of Massachusetts.
Published in the journal Nature Aging, the MIT-led team’s research suggests that we may be able to slow down “changes that accompany ageing” by simulating a prolonged state of torpor – a shorter alternative to hibernation, which is common in animals and in which body temperature and energy use drops.
Ageing is a complex phenomenon that we’re just starting to unravel
“Although the full relationship between torpor and ageing remains unclear, our findings point to decreased body temperature as the central driver of this anti-ageing effect,” said MIT’s Sinisa Hrvatin.