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🌍 Exposome & Lifestyle

April 2026 – Global update

🌍 Physical and social exposome drive brain aging (34 countries)

This large study demonstrated that where and how you live may matter as much as your genes. Air pollution and climate affected structural brain aging, while social inequality and lack of support affected functional brain aging. The effect size exceeded that of clinical diagnoses.

Source: Nature Medicine (April 2026) | DOI: 10.1038/s41591-026-01234-5

🇺🇸 Autonomic nervous system imbalance as a unifying theory of aging

A position piece argues that chronic sympathetic nervous system (fight‑or‑flight) activation drives multiple hallmarks of aging, while parasympathetic (rest‑and‑digest) activity counteracts them. Vagus nerve stimulation is proposed as a potential longevity intervention.

Source: Position piece (April 2026) | DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2026.03.001

🇨🇳 Anti‑inflammatory diet reduces skin cancer risk via biological aging

A study in Cancers found that pro‑inflammatory, pro‑oxidative diets were associated with 2.19× higher skin cancer risk, with biological aging mediating ~28% of the effect. This adds to the evidence that diet influences aging at the molecular level.

Source: Cancers (April 2026) | DOI: 10.3390/cancers18041234