Ever had one of those days where it feels like your body is just falling apart? Well, it turns out that might not just be in your head, especially if you’re in your 40s or 60s. A new study from Stanford Medicine found that our bodies go through some pretty dramatic changes during this period. The aging process makes it like your molecules and microbes decide to have a midlife crisis, and things get a little wild.
Sudden Shifts in Our Bodies
Researchers looked at thousands of different molecules and microbiomes (that’s the bacteria, viruses, and fungi living in and on us) in people aged 25 to 75. What they discovered is that aging isn’t this slow, steady process we imagine. Instead, our bodies have two big “uh-oh” moments, one around your mid-40s and another in your early 60s. This is where everything seems to shift all at once. The study was published in Nature Aging on August 14.