Longevity is often associated with good genes, proper nutrition, rest and exercise but new evidence shows another critical element to healthy aging. Researchers at the National Institutes of Health found adults who stay well-hydrated are healthier and live longer as a result of developing fewer chronic conditions like heart and lung disease.
Scientists analyzed data from more than 11,000 adults gathered over a 30-year period and published their findings in the journal eBioMedicine. They found a connection between serum sodium levels, which rise and fall according to fluid intake, and various health markers.
Adults who had serum sodium levels at the higher end of the normal range were more likely to show signs of advanced biological aging and develop more chronic conditions compared to those in the medium range. They were also more susceptible to dying at a younger age.
"The results suggest that proper hydration may slow down aging and prolong a disease-free life," said Natalia Dmitrieva, Ph.D., a study author and researcher in the Laboratory of Cardiovascular Regenerative Medicine at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), part of NIH.
The study tracked participants over multiple medical visits, first starting in their 50s and then up into their 70s and later. They excluded from the study those who started with elevated serum sodium levels or those with underlying conditions like obesity with the potential to affect those levels.
They evaluated serum sodium levels throughout the years to see how they correlated with biological aging by assessing 15 different health markers. The normal range of serum sodium levels is between 135-146 milliequivalents per liter (mEq/L) and adults on the higher end of that spectrum were more likely to show signs of faster biological aging.
For example, those above 142 were as much as 15 percent more likely to have a biological age higher than their actual age and those above 144 were 50 percent more likely. Adults whose range was between 144.5 and 146 had a 21 percent greater risk of premature death compared to those with an average below 142. Those with serum sodium levels greater than 142 had a 64 percent greater chance of developing a chronic condition such as heart failure, stroke, atrial fibrillation or peripheral artery disease, in addition to lung disease diabetes and dementia.
The National Academies of Medicine recommend women consume 6-9 cups of fluids per day and men consume 8-12. Dmitrieva suggests people stick to water or other fluids like juices or vegetables and fruits with high water content.
"On the global level, this can have a big impact," Dmitrieva said. "Decreased body water content is the most common factor that increases serum sodium, which is why the results suggest that staying well hydrated may slow down the aging process and prevent or delay chronic disease."