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The human body doesn’t age steadily throughout middle age and instead goes through bursts of rapid aging typically at around age 44 and again at 60, according to a new study published Wednesday in the academic journal Nature Aging. Stanford University researchers tracked age-related changes in more than 135,000 types of molecules and microbes in samples collected every three to six months from more than 100 adults between the ages of 25 and 75 years old. Researchers gathered more than 5,400 blood, stool, skin nasal swab and oral swabs as part of the study, and as a result were able...

Leading a country comes with extraordinary privileges but also, apparently, a price: new research suggests that heads of state age faster than normal and that the stress of the job may shave almost three years off their life expectancy. Doctors analyzed how long presidents and prime ministers in 17 countries - including Britain, Canada, France, Germany and the U.S. - survived after leaving office, compared to the losing candidates. They also observed the number of years that heads of state lived versus what was expected for someone of the same age and gender. After considering the fates of 279 heads...