A shocking new study has discovered roughly when the human body starts to age faster, with one organ seemingly to blame.
Getting older is something we all dream of when we are kids, only to be hit with the existential dread of working our lives away and rarely getting the chance to enjoy ourselves before we retire.
And it seems as if those of you who are delaying travel plans might want to book some flights sooner rather than later, as you may well not have too long until those stiff joints become a more permanent occurrence.
Chinese study discovers exact window your body starts ageing faster
Scientists in China think that they have managed to identify the exact window where the human ageing process begins to accelerate and it's well before many of us would think.
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After analysing 516 tissue samples from 76 organ donors between the ages of 14 and 68, all of whom died from accidental traumatic brain injury, the study authors determined that it is around 30 when changes are first noticed, and between 45 and 55 where we really start to notice.
“Temporal analysis revealed an ageing inflection around age 50, with blood vessels being a tissue that ages early and is markedly susceptible to ageing", the study authors wrote.
What happens inside your body when you hit this age?
Scientists have previously determined that there are around proteins within the human body linked to disease, and this number dramatically increased as the age of the deceased organ donors went up.
They were linked with a wide range of conditions including but not limited to cardiovascular disease, tissue fibrosis and liver-related tumours.
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As would be expected from a wide range of people with different diets and lifestyle choices, not all of the organs aged equally. Protein-level changes in the adrenal gland, located on top of the kidneys, began showing up as early as 30.
But the real shift happened between the ages of 45 and 55, when protein expression ramped up rapidly across several major organ systems.
One organ takes a vital hit during this process
However, one organ was hit more heavily than most, as the most dramatic changes showed up in the aorta, an artery within the heart which is responsible for sending oxygen-rich blood to the rest of the body.
GAS6, a protein that plays a role in various cellular processes, including cell growth, survival, and migration, stood out as its levels rose within the aorta as donors got older.
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Researchers believe that its presence could play a central role in in triggering ageing throughout the body.
What do these findings mean?
It's not all bad news, as the scientists behind the study feel that their findings can help improve the health of older adults in the future.
They wrote: "These insights may facilitate the development of targeted interventions for aging and age-related diseases, paving the way to improve the health of older adults."
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Fortunately, it seems as if scientists may have also made a major breakthrough in halting the human ageing process, so by the time we turn 50, it might not even matter.
There are also plenty of natural ways in which you can slow down the body's ageing process, including taking daily walks and drinking less alcohol.
James Moorhouse