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Vitamin D supplements may help slow biological aging

A Harvard study found that vitamin D helps protect DNA

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Mark Huffman
Reporter

Mark Huffman has covered consumer issues since 2004, with a special focus on protecting and empowering older adults. A former news correspondent for the Associated Press Radio Network, Westwood One, and ConsumerAffairs, Mark brings decades of journalistic experience to RetirementLiving.com. He is passionate about giving consumers a voice and helping them make informed decisions. Mark has also created educational content, including Senior Scam Alert, a video resource designed to help seniors recognize and avoid fraud. He holds a B.A. from the University of Kentucky and lives with his family in Richmond, Virginia.

Photo by Maria Kozyr on Unsplash

Key Insights

  • A Harvard study found that vitamin D supplements may help slow biological aging by protecting telomeres, the protective caps on DNA.
  • Over four years, participants who took vitamin D lost fewer DNA base pairs than those on a placebo—equating to nearly three years of aging delay.
  • Omega-3 supplements showed no effect on telomere length in the study’s findings.

A new study published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition should get every senior’s attention.

It found that daily vitamin D supplementation may significantly slow down one of the key biological processes associated with aging. The study, part of the large-scale, randomized VITAL trial, was co-led by researchers at Harvard-affiliated Mass General Brigham and the Medical College of Georgia.

The study focused on telomeres—protective caps at the ends of chromosomes that shorten over time as cells divide. Telomere shortening is closely linked to biological aging and increased risk of chronic diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular disease, and autoimmune conditions. 

While small, short-term studies have hinted that vitamin D might influence telomere dynamics, the VITAL Telomere sub-study offers the most robust evidence to date.

The sub-study tracked telomere length in the white blood cells of 1,054 participants, drawn from the broader VITAL trial population of men aged 50 and older and women aged 55 and older. Participants were randomly assigned to receive either 2,000 IU of vitamin D3 daily, 1 gram of omega-3 fatty acids daily, or a placebo over four years.

‘Three-year’ anti-aging effect

Compared to the placebo group, those who took vitamin D3 supplements experienced significantly less telomere shortening. According to the researchers, the telomere preservation equated to approximately three fewer years of biological aging over the study period. In contrast, omega-3 fatty acid supplementation did not show a statistically significant impact on telomere length.

“VITAL is the first large-scale and long-term randomized trial to show that vitamin D supplements protect telomeres and preserve telomere length,” said Dr. JoAnn Manson, principal investigator of VITAL and a professor at Harvard Medical School. 

She noted that these findings build on earlier VITAL results, which linked vitamin D to reduced inflammation and lower risks of chronic diseases, including certain cancers and autoimmune disorders.

“This research suggests that targeted vitamin D supplementation may be a promising strategy to counter a biological aging process,” said Haidong Zhu, the study’s first author and a molecular geneticist at Augusta University’s Medical College of Georgia.

However, researchers caution that while the results are promising, they are not definitive. Further research is necessary to better understand the mechanisms at play and to determine optimal dosing and demographic targeting.

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