Khbarani - A recent study conducted by researchers from Harvard University found that daily intake of Vitamin D3 in a studied dose may contribute to slowing biological aging by reducing the rate of telomere attrition, which are the ends of chromosomes linked to aging.
The study, which lasted 4 years and included more than a thousand participants, divided the volunteers into two groups. The first group took 2000 international units of Vitamin D3 daily, while the second group received a placebo treatment.
The results of the analysis showed that the group that took the vitamin experienced a slower decrease in telomere length, not exceeding 7% during the study duration, compared to a decrease of 28% in the other group.
Commenting on the findings, Dr. JoAnn Manson, chief of the division of preventive medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital and a member of the research team, explained that this is the first large-scale randomized study documenting the protective effect of Vitamin D on telomeres. She noted that the vitamin could also help reduce inflammation and the risk of age-related chronic diseases such as cancer and immune disorders.
In turn, the lead researcher in the study, Dr. Haodong Zhou, confirmed that the results offer promising evidence about the impact of Vitamin D at the cellular level, but they call for more long-term research involving more diverse samples in terms of gender and ethnicity.
It is believed that Vitamin D enhances the activity of the enzyme "telomerase," which helps maintain telomeres and contributes to reducing oxidative stress within the body.
Despite the notable benefits, researchers warned against excessive consumption of the vitamin without medical supervision, emphasizing that the dose used in the study (2000 units daily) exceeds the daily recommended amount, but still falls within safe levels not exceeding 4000 international units.
The study was published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition and received partial funding from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health in the United States.
