Hormone therapy shows promise in slowing skin aging
A new study highlights the anti-aging properties of key hormones, offering potential treatments for wrinkles, hair graying, and other signs of aging.
Hormone therapy shows promise in slowing skin aging | Image Credit: © Rido - © Rido - stock.adobe.com.
Signs of aging such as wrinkles and hair graying may be managed using hormones, according to a recent study published in Endocrine Reviews, journal of the Endocrine Society.1
The data highlights the anti-aging properties of a new class of hormones. This provides a treatment option for side effects of menopause, which has traditionally been limited to a small number of hormones such as topical retinoids.1
“Our paper highlights key hormone players that orchestrate pathways of skin aging such as degradation of connective tissue, stem cell survival and loss of pigment,” said lead author Markus Böhm, MD, of the University of Münster. “Some of the hormones we studied have anti-aging properties and may be used in the future as agents to prevent skin aging.”1
Both intrinsic and extrinsic aging caused by environmental factors occur in the skin. According to Böhm, alongside being a target for various hormones influencing skin aging, the skin is the largest and richest site for hormone production besides endocrine glands.1
The study assessed key hormones for skin aging to determine the link between these factors. These hormones included estrogens, growth hormone, melatonin, retinoids, and insulin-like growth factor 1.1
Significant focus was given to melatonin as an inexpensive, small molecule with potential anti-skin aging characteristics. The hormone is well tolerated and is a regulator of mitochondrial metabolism, working as a direct and indirect antioxidant. Genetic deficiency syndromes also highlighted multiple hormones having biological effects on skin function and hair aging.1
Endocrine players such as α-melanocyte-stimulating hormone, hypothalamic-pituitary-thyroid axis members, oxytocin, endocannabinoids, and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor modulators may also have roles in skin aging. According to researchers, these factors have positive effects on UV-induced genotoxic stress linked to photoaging and pigment synthesis in the hair and skin.1
“Further research into these hormones may offer opportunities to develop new therapeutics for treating and preventing skin aging,” said Böhm.1
This data is supported by a 2024 study linking hormone therapy to reduced biological aging.2 The study used data from the UK biobank, a large-scale cohort with over 500,000 individuals aged 40 to 69 years.
The final analysis included 117,763 postmenopausal women with a mean age of 60.2 years. A history of hormone therapy (HT) use was reported in 40.3% of these individuals, with these patients more often having an older chronological and phenotypic age, lower income, lower education, more prevalent chronic diseases, and higher nicotine exposure vs nonusers.2
Aging discrepancy was reduced by 0.17 years among patients with a history of HT use in the adjusted analysis. This reduction was observed regardless of socioeconomic status, but patients with a low socioeconomic status reported an increased aging discrepancy regardless of HT use.2
Patients starting HT when aged over 45 years and those with HT use for 4 to 8 years reported a reduced aging discrepancy. Additionally, HT use had significant interaction with education. Participants of a higher education who were nonusers and users reported aging discrepancies of 5.03 and 4.95, respectively.2
These results highlighted an association between HT use and reduced biological aging among postmenopausal women. This supports the use of hormones for managing symptoms of aging.
Reference
- Hormones may have therapeutic potential to prevent wrinkles, hair graying. Endocrine Society. February 25, 2025. Accessed February 25, 2025. https://www.endocrine.org/news-and-advocacy/news-room/2025/hormones-may-have-therapeutic-potential-to-prevent-wrinkles-hair-graying
- Krewosn C. Hormone therapy linked to reduced biological aging. Contemporary OB/GYN. August 30, 2024. Accessed February 25, 2025. https://www.contemporaryobgyn.net/view/hormone-therapy-linked-to-reduced-biological-aging
Later-onset menopause linked to lower heart disease risk
February 10th 2025A new study from the University of Colorado Boulder suggests that women who experience menopause at age 55 years or later may have significantly better vascular health and a reduced risk of heart attacks and strokes.
Read More
