{"id":1619,"date":"2026-09-24T15:50:52","date_gmt":"2026-09-24T15:50:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/flatplanplus.io\/bbc-sciencefocus\/?p=1619"},"modified":"2026-09-24T15:50:52","modified_gmt":"2026-09-24T15:50:52","slug":"weight-loss-jabs-may-slow-biological-ageing-landmark-new-study-suggests","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/flatplanplus.io\/bbc-sciencefocus\/2026\/09\/24\/weight-loss-jabs-may-slow-biological-ageing-landmark-new-study-suggests\/","title":{"rendered":"Weight-loss jabs may slow biological ageing, landmark new study suggests"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Health<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Weight-loss jabs may slow biological ageing, landmark new study suggests<\/h1>\n\n\n\n

Evidence is building that GLP-1s could influence the biology of ageing itself, independent of weight loss<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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By Jess Mcallen<\/p>\n\n\n\n

–<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Photo credit: Getty<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

The results of a new study, recently published in Nature<\/em><\/a>, have some scientists cautiously suggesting that GLP-1 drugs might affect biological ageing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When researchers injected 20-month-old female mice with semaglutide, they found the mice lived an extra 92 days. That\u2019s a 12 per cent increase, compared with their typical median lifespan of 742 days.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Biological ageing is the \u201cgradual wear and tear that happens inside your cells and tissues over time,\u201d says HIV researcher Dr Grace McComsey<\/a>, who recently co-authored a separate analysis on GLP-1s and their ability to reduce hallmarks of ageing in adults with HIV.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s different from how old you are in years or how many birthdays you\u2019ve had \u2013 your chronological age.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSomeone can be chronologically 60 and be younger in biological age because they are healthy and take care of themself,\u201d said McComsey. \u201cThe opposite is true too.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As well as living longer, the injected mice showed markers of healthier ageing at a cellular level. This included reduced inflammation, fewer senescent cells, better-functioning mitochondria (structures inside cells that help turn nutrients and oxygen into energy) and the growth of more new cells in regions of the brain involved in learning and memory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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GLP-1 drugs, such as semaglutide, mimic a natural fullness hormone which changes how quickly the stomach releases its contents, influences blood sugar, and encourages users to eat less, leading to weight loss. Photo credit: Getty<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Prof Richard Faragher<\/a>, who specialises in biological gerontology at the University of Brighton, described senescent cells as intentional drivers of inflammation, and said their reduction in the study was significant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s like that scene from Lord of the Rings<\/em> where Gandalf says to Bilbo: \u2018Remember Bilbo, the ring wants<\/em> to be found,\u2019\u201d said Faragher when explaining the concept of senescent cells.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey are making a nuisance of themselves to attract immune cells to kill them. The problem is that your immune system is also made of cells, and it\u2019s ageing.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He explained: \u201cWhen you are a teenager, as soon as you make a senescent cell, it is clobbered. By the time you are my age it\u2019s more like one of those calls you make to the dentist: \u2018we are experiencing an extremely high call volume, please stand by\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The result? Damage accumulates: in the skin this causes wrinkles, in blood vessels it causes cardiovascular disease, and in the brain it causes cognitive impairment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But semaglutide is used to reduce appetite, so these effects could have simply been a result of the mice eating less.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s why the researchers later ran a separate five-month study using a new group of mice. Semaglutide made the initial group of mice eat about 24 per cent less food, so the researchers restricted the comparison group\u2019s calorie intake by 24 per cent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Both groups of mice lost a comparable amount of body weight and fat mass, and performed similarly on their treadmills. But the mice on semaglutide pulled ahead on spatial memory, glucose control and exploratory behaviours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhat is becoming increasingly clear is that GLP-1 receptor agonists have effects on life expectancy that are independent of their effects on body mass,\u201d said Faragher.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Read More:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n