The study titled ‘Substance use and epigenetic age acceleration: Associations with alcohol, tobacco, illicit drugs, and SUD severity’ investigates the links between substance use and biological aging. Conducted by researchers from the Irsay Institute for Sociomedical Sciences Research and the University of Michigan, the study analyzed data from 2,276 adults participating in the Person-to-Person Health Interview Study in Indiana.
Prior research had not thoroughly examined whether clinically significant measures of alcohol use, nicotine consumption, opioid use, or overall substance use disorder (SUD) severity are associated with accelerated biological aging. This study aims to fill that gap by utilizing validated assessments of SUD severity and substance use, alongside saliva samples for DNA methylation profiling.
Methods
The researchers employed regression models to estimate the associations between various substance use indicators and biological aging, adjusting for relevant covariates. Biological aging was measured using two established metrics: AgeAccelGrim2 and DunedinPACE.
Results
The findings revealed that:
- Binary measures of illicit opioid use were positively associated with both AgeAccelGrim2 and DunedinPACE.
- Non-prescription opioid use also showed a positive association with these biological aging measures.
- Clinically significant alcohol use was positively associated with AgeAccelGrim2 but did not show a similar association with DunedinPACE.
- Cigarette smoking was positively associated with both measures of biological aging across all levels of usage.
- Interestingly, hookah use was negatively associated with AgeAccelGrim2 at all levels, while vaping did not show a significant association when analyzed alongside cigarette smoking.
Overall, the study concludes that substance use, particularly cigarette smoking and opioid use, is strongly linked to accelerated biological aging. These findings highlight the importance of further research to understand the mechanisms connecting substance use, especially opioid use and vaping, to biological aging.
What this study does not show
This study does not establish causation between substance use and biological aging, nor does it explore the underlying mechanisms that may contribute to these associations.
Evidence scorecard
- Analytic validity: Established
- Clinical validity: Not established
- Clinical utility: Not established
The evidence is based on primary research involving human participants.