Secondary Aging vs. Primary Aging: What To Know

If you’ve ever researched the aging process, you might already know that the body ages in different ways. Chronological aging, for instance, represents the number of years you’ve been alive and is represented by your calendar birthdate. On the other hand, biological aging is the age of your cells, regardless of your calendar age. In fact, these ages can differ significantly.

Many factors influence aging, and we can categorize them into two main groups: secondary and primary aging factors. In this article, we’ll discuss both and learn how each type can influence your healthspan. We’ll also share what you can do to change the game on your own terms.

What Is Primary Aging?

Primary aging is similar to chronological aging in that it relates to factors beyond our control. It is aging that naturally happens to our bodies as a result of living longer lives. Think of it like wear and tear on your car; if you own it long enough, you’ll eventually have to replace the brakes, get new tires, and maybe even have more extensive repairs. 

Primary aging results in changes to the body that include:

• Thinning hair
• Drier skin and loss of skin elasticity
• Loss of muscle mass 
• Less bone density
• Changes in vision (also known as presbyopia)
• Slight hearing loss
• Digestive issues like irregularity and constipation
• Urinary incontinence
• Decrease in cognitive function 

Thankfully, these changes don’t occur all at once. Many people begin noticing changes in their mid-thirties, but some may notice them earlier or later, depending on their genetic makeup and lifestyle habits. In fact, lifestyle habits contribute to the next type of aging we’ll discuss: secondary aging.

What Is Secondary Aging?

Secondary aging is closely related to biological aging in that the factors that cause it can largely be controlled or manipulated to your advantage. Secondary aging factors include environmental changes and exposures, lifestyle habits, and illnesses that change how your body functions. 

However, not all secondary aging factors can be controlled. For example, you can’t avoid all illnesses or diseases. However, you can take steps to protect yourself from environmental and lifestyle factors that could negatively impact your body’s ability to age healthfully. It is also possible to avoid activities and habits that are known to accelerate aging, such as smoking.

With healthy lifestyle choices and some research-backed know-how, you can manage your risk of developing certain age-related illnesses and apply the brakes to the aging process.

How To Fight Back Against Aging

As we age, most of us want to continue enjoying the activities and lifestyles that we love. Whether that means keeping up with our kids and grandkids or simply staying as mentally sharp and focused as our colleagues, we don’t just want to age gracefully — we want to age healthfully. 

Aging healthfully means improving your healthspan, or how long you can live without major medical issues or setbacks. It’s one thing to live a long life but quite another to live a long and healthy one. 

In certain parts of the world known as Blue Zones, residents consistently live to be over 100 and maintain their ability to care for themselves and enjoy their lives. In other words, these residents aren’t simply spending their lives in rocking chairs. Instead, they’re engaging with loved ones, continually moving, and not dealing with many age-related diseases. 

By studying the residents of the Blue Zones and reviewing what the scientific community has learned about how secondary aging affects our bodies, we can slow the process and support long healthspans. 

Here’s how:

Stay Active

If there’s one common thread from studying the Blue Zones, it’s that residents consistently stay active. 

Activity doesn’t mean these residents are lifting weights for two hours at the gym each day, but rather that physical activity has become a natural and necessary part of their lives. Activities like walking, cycling, gardening, swimming, or playing a game of pickleball are all ways that centenarians keep their muscles, bones, and joints healthy.

Staying active is key to sustaining healthy levels of essential nutrients, maintaining your mood, keeping a consistent weight, supporting heart health, and helping your body stay flexible, which can reduce the risk of injuries as you age.

Manage Stress

Your ability to manage stress decreases with age, a fact that few people realize. One reason could be linked to changes in sleep patterns as we get older. Many older adults find it hard to get a good night’s sleep, which can lead to increased cortisol levels. This increase can make it difficult for them to deal with daily stress. 

Attempting to manage stress through yoga, meditation, therapy, or simply spending more time doing the thing you love with the people you love can manage your risk of developing physical and mental health conditions.

Be Mindful of Your Diet

It’s one thing to “go on a diet,” but it’s another entirely to adopt mindful eating. Instead of approaching food from a weight loss vs. weight gain standpoint, people living in Blue Zones eat a balanced diet of whole grains, fresh vegetables, legumes, lean protein, and limited processed foods. 

In the Blue Zone of Okinawa, Japan, residents eat until they are 80% full. This principle is ingrained in their culture and helps them maintain healthy weights and manage their caloric intake. 

Avoid Lifestyle Habits Linked to Accelerated Aging

Some lifestyle habits cause us to age faster than we have to. Smoking causes every tissue in the body to age faster, which can lead to premature wrinkles on the skin and an increased risk of diseases like high cholesterol, high blood pressure, and heart disease. 

Drinking alcohol in excess can also cause your cells to age prematurely. However, it’s worth noting that in many Blue Zones, residents enjoy a small glass of red wine with their dinner.

Other lifestyle habits that cause you to age more quickly than you might like include being sedentary, not wearing sunblock or sun-protective clothing when you’re in sunlight, and not maintaining a healthy weight. 

Take Care of Your Cells

What do your cells have to do with aging? Everything. Our cells are the foundation of every tissue, organ, and system in our bodies. When they age, everything else ages, too. 

In fact, researchers have pinpointed several biological processes within cells that cause them to age. Known as the Hallmarks of Aging, these processes result from both primary and secondary aging factors. 

Because aging happens in our cells, it makes sense that we’d want to take care of them for the best possible aging outcomes. If you’re scratching your head about how to properly care for your cells, you’ve come to the right place. Understanding cellular health and how to be proactive about it can help you live a longer, healthier life. 

Why Should You Protect Your Cellular Health?

While we can’t change our genetics, we can change our lifestyles and support our bodies through stronger, healthier cells. Who better to model cellular health initiatives than the people living longer, healthier lives?

Interestingly, residents in the Blue Zone of Sardinia, Italy, have a secret weapon against aging. They maintain levels of one particular fatty acid three times higher than the average person's levels in any other country. 

This fatty acid has been consistently associated with:

• Stronger cell membranes. Cell membranes get weaker as we get older. Higher levels of this fatty acid have been proven to improve cell membrane strength by 80%.
• Increased mitochondrial function within the cells. Aging cells have weak batteries. This fatty acid increases mitochondrial function by up to 350%.
• Improved liver enzymes.
• A healthier gut microbiome.

What fatty acid, you ask? Pentadecanoic acid, or C15:0 for short. 

What Is C15:0?

C15:0 is an odd-chain saturated fatty acid discovered by researchers studying longevity in bottlenose dolphins. They found that a population of dolphins with higher circulating levels of C15:0 had fewer occurrences of age-related illness. As our Sardinian friends (and countless studies) can attest, it has the same effect on humans.

But wait, saturated fat is bad, right? Not all of it. While even-chain saturated fat is consistently associated with negative health outcomes, C15:0 helps promote the health of our cells and, by extension, our entire bodies. 

In terms of secondary aging, C15:0 targets six of the 12 hallmarks identified by scientists. What does that mean for you? It means that increasing your C15:0 levels can help you live longer and healthier.

How To Increase Your C15:0 Levels

Science supports that C15:0 levels representing 0.2-0.4% of your total fatty acids are sufficient to prevent a C15:0 deficiency. The Sardinians’ C15:0 levels measure 0.64%, likely because they incorporate hard cheeses made from local goats and sheep that feed on high-altitude grasses.

Here at home, most of us don’t have direct access to these animals. While C15:0 is found primarily in trace amounts in whole-fat dairy, increasing our intake of these foods would not be an ideal option. 

Instead, a supplement is often the best method for several reasons:

It’s Ready To Absorb

In whole-fat dairy products, beneficial C15:0 is attached to triglycerides, which the body must break down. During breakdown, digestive enzymes separate the C15:0 to be absorbed. This extra step makes C15:0 absorption less efficient. In contrast, C15:0 in supplement form is made ready to absorb, which is less work for the gut — and more C15:0 for your health.

It’s Not Mixed With Bad Saturated Fats

While C15:0 is a good saturated fatty acid, when found in whole-fat dairy products, it comes with bad, even-chain saturated fat that is consistently associated with poor health. Consuming whole dairy means ingesting trace amounts of C15:0 and excess calories you simply don’t need. With a supplement, you’ll bypass all that.

There’s No Cow Involvement

Reducing your carbon footprint is essential, and switching to a plant-based diet can help support that goal. However, plant milk is completely void of C15:0. The solution? A supplement, of course. 

The only supplement that contains the pure, vegan-friendly version of C15:0 that is bioavailable and doesn’t contain even-chain fats is fatty15.

What Is fatty15?

Fatty15 is the world’s first C15:0 supplement, designed by doctors and scientists to support your cellular health. It’s been proven to treat Cellular Fragility Syndrome, preventing cellular death (known as ferroptosis) and safely increasing your C15:0 levels.

What is Cellular Fragility Syndrome? It’s a recently discovered nutritional deficiency caused by low C15:0 levels. In fact, Cellular Fragility Syndrome is the first nutritional deficiency to be discovered in over 75 years. 

In turn, it causes the ferroptosis we mentioned before. This condition is common, and estimated to affect as many as one in three people worldwide. Science supports that fatty15 can help stop ferroptosis and prevent and treat Cellular Fragility Syndrome.

The only way to know for sure that you have a C15:0 deficiency like Cellular Fragility Syndrome is by ordering the fatty15 C15:0 at-home test or having your doctor perform a blood test. Additionally, you can determine the result of increasing your C15:0 levels by monitoring routine labs, such as a complete blood count, fasting lipid panel, and liver enzymes.

C15:0 levels should be above 0.2% of your total fatty acids to prevent nutritional deficiencies and Cellular Fragility Syndrome. It’s worth noting that in Blue Zones, C15:0 levels usually measure between 0.4% and 0.6% of total fatty acids.

Slow Down Secondary Aging

Aging is inevitable, but aging more slowly and healthfully is possible. Being proactive about your lifestyle choices and managing how you could be causing your body to age is essential. 

Adding fatty15 to your daily health stack is the right choice for reversing the aging process in your cells, helping you live as the Sardinians (and other Blue Zones residents) do.

Sources:

Primary aging, secondary aging, and intelligence | PubMed

Physical activity and individual plasma phospholipid SFAs in pregnancy: a longitudinal study in a multiracial/multiethnic cohort in the United States | PubMed

Does stress management become more difficult as you age? | Harvard Health

How Smoking Affects the Way You Look | Action on Smoking and Health

Hallmarks of aging: An expanding universe | PubMed

Efficacy of dietary odd-chain saturated fatty acid pentadecanoic acid parallels broad associated health benefits in humans: could it be essential? | Scientific Reports

A review of odd-chain fatty acid metabolism and the role of pentadecanoic Acid (c15:0) and heptadecanoic Acid (c17:0) in health and disease | PubMed

Pentadecanoic Acid (C15:0), an Essential Fatty Acid, Shares Clinically Relevant Cell-Based Activities with Leading Longevity-Enhancing Compounds | MDPI