Healthy ageing: the science behind more good days
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Rufus is approaching eight years old and I can't help noticing the grey hairs creeping into his muzzle. At the moment he's still charging ahead of me on every walk, nose down and tail wagging, but every now and then I catch myself wondering when that will change and our walks become a bit shorter and slower? And, if I'm honest, how many more years like this do we have together? I reckon we’ve all had the same thoughts and tried our best to ignore them.
We know our dogs won't be with us forever, but we'd all love them to stay healthy, active and enjoying life for as long as possible. That's why you hear the phrases healthy ageing or healthspan more and more these days. It's become a buzzword in both human and veterinary medicine, but what does it actually mean?
Lifespan vs healthspan
For years, the focus was almost entirely on lifespan which is how long an animal lives. Increasingly, however, scientists are turning their attention to healthspan: the proportion of life spent in good health. After all, two dogs might both celebrate their fourteenth birthday, but have had very different journeys getting there.
One may still be enjoying long walks and clambering onto the sofa for a cuddle, while the other has spent years struggling with arthritis, digestive problems or declining mobility. Healthy ageing isn't about stopping the clock. It's about helping our dogs spend as much of their lives as possible feeling like themselves.
What actually happens as dogs get older?
To understand why that's important, it helps to understand what ageing actually is.
Every second of every day, your dog's body is repairing itself. Cells wear out and are replaced. Muscles recover after exercise. The immune system fights off infection. Damaged proteins are broken down and recycled, while DNA is continually checked for mistakes. It's an astonishingly busy process, and when dogs are young those repair systems are remarkably efficient.
As they get older, however, the balance gradually begins to shift. Damage starts to accumulate a little faster than the body can repair it. Cells become less efficient, energy production slows and low-level inflammation becomes more common. None of these changes is dramatic on its own but together they gradually influence how the body functions.
One of the biggest contributors is oxidative stress. Every time cells produce energy they also produce unstable molecules known as free radicals. In small amounts they're perfectly normal but if too many build up they can damage cells and tissues over time. Fortunately, the body has its own defence system in the form of antioxidants, which help neutralise excess free radicals before they cause harm. This is one reason why diets rich in naturally occurring antioxidants have become such an important area of ageing research.
What scientists are discovering about healthy ageing
Scientists are also learning that ageing is controlled by a network of biological pathways rather than a single "ageing gene". One of the best studied is called IGF-1, or Insulin-like Growth Factor 1. It's involved in growth, tissue repair and metabolism throughout life, but research suggests it may also play an important role in how animals age. The picture is far more complicated than simply increasing or decreasing IGF-1. Instead, researchers are interested in how the body regulates this pathway and whether certain nutrients help maintain that balance as animals grow older.
One nutrient attracting particular attention is selenium. Best known as an antioxidant, selenium forms part of several enzymes that protect cells from oxidative damage. Emerging research also suggests it may influence pathways associated with healthy ageing, including IGF-1. It's an exciting field, although it's still evolving, and it's important to remember that no single nutrient is responsible for healthy ageing on its own.
No single ingredient has all the answers
Healthy ageing isn't about finding one miracle ingredient or one supplement that changes everything. It's about creating the conditions that allow the body to keep doing what it was designed to do for as long as possible. Maintaining a healthy weight, exercising regularly, looking after dental health, feeding a balanced diet and providing a wide range of naturally occurring nutrients all work together to support that goal.
That's also why we believe whole foods have such an important role to play. Rather than delivering a single nutrient, whole foods offer a broad range of naturally occurring compounds that support multiple systems throughout the body.
Nature rarely packages nutrients in isolation. Oily fish provides omega-3 fatty acids alongside selenium, vitamin D and Coenzyme Q10. Broccoli contains fibre, but also sulforaphane and vitamin C. Mushrooms provide beta-glucans together with powerful antioxidant compounds and brewer’s yeast is the best source of bioavailable selenium.
Watching Rufus race across the common this morning, I know I can't stop him getting older. None of us can. But the science increasingly suggests we can influence how well our dogs age, and I find that genuinely encouraging.
Try our healthy ageing calculator to get personalised information about your dog
