In a pioneering effort to understand the factors influencing aging, a team from the American University in Cairo (AUC) has played a key role in a groundbreaking international study published in the prestigious journal Nature Medicine. Spearheaded by Mohamed Salama, a professor at AUC’s Institute of Global Health and Human Ecology, and Sara Moustafa, a postdoctoral researcher, the study reveals how environmental and political conditions significantly impact our biological aging process.
The research, which involved 161,981 participants from 40 different countries, introduces a novel global exposome framework. This framework assesses bio-behavioral age gaps (BBAGs), which measure the discrepancy between an individual’s chronological age and their age as predicted by health, cognitive, and social factors. These factors include cardiometabolic health, sensory impairments, and educational attainment, among others.
Collaborating with a multinational team from Latin America, Africa, Europe, Asia, and North America, the study explored how diverse exposures impact brain aging. Using advanced artificial intelligence and epidemiological modeling, researchers discovered that environmental, social, and political factors can accelerate brain aging, increasing the risk for cognitive and functional decline. Notably, the AUC team contributed significantly to this research, leveraging their expertise in aging and brain health.
“Diversity in research is not a luxury anymore,” stated Mohamed Salama. “Including countries from Africa and the Middle East is essential to understand global risks and challenges for brain health.” This sentiment was echoed by Agustin Ibanez, the study’s corresponding author from the Global Brain Health Institute. He emphasized the need for a broader ecological and neuro syndemic approach to brain health, recognizing that our biological age is influenced by the world we inhabit.
The study’s findings are the first to provide evidence that external structural exposures impact aging, moving beyond individual lifestyle factors. Hernan Hernandez, the study’s first author, noted, “Environmental and political conditions leave measurable fingerprints across 40 countries, revealing a gradient of accelerated aging from Africa to Latin America, Asia, and Europe.”
Key exposures linked to accelerated aging include poor air quality, economic and gender inequality, migration, and weak democratic structures. Higher BBAGs correlated with real-world declines in cognitive and daily functional abilities over time.
Sandra Beaz, co-corresponding author and Atlantic Fellow at Trinity College, highlighted that healthy aging is not only about individual choices but also about the socio-political environment. The study suggests that public health strategies need to address structural inequalities and governance issues to promote healthy aging globally.
Hernando Santamaria-Garcia, co-first author and GBHI fellow, urged governments and international bodies to act. “We need to reshape environments by reducing air pollution and strengthening democratic institutions,” he said, pointing out that such measures are critical for urgent health interventions.
