COVID stress linked to faster epigenetic ageing in teens, Max Planck study

Stress during the COVID-19 pandemic was linked to faster biological ageing in teenagers, but not in children or young adults, according to a study led by researchers at the Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry in Munich. The findings were reported on Thursday, 5 November 2026, and the study appears in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). The team measured "epigenetic age", an estimate of biological age read from chemical marks on DNA, in saliva samples from just over 1,000 people in Germany, taken before and after the country's lockdowns. Epigenetic ageing sped up in every age group during the pandemic. Only among adolescents aged 14 to 16, however, was the speed-up tied to how much stress they felt, especially the burden of the pandemic and losing contact with friends.

This study asks whether the stress of the pandemic years left a measurable trace in young people's bodies. Epigenetic clocks work by reading patterns of chemical tags on DNA that change as people grow older. When a person's epigenetic age runs ahead of the calendar, scientists describe it as faster ageing. It is a research measure, not a diagnosis.

The key point for young readers is who was most sensitive. The authors say adolescence appears to be a particularly sensitive phase for the psychological burden of pandemic stress, and in particular for social isolation. For children and adults, the researchers suggest the speed-up could be linked to other changes in daily life, such as being less physically active.

How stressed people felt did not follow infection rates or lockdown rules; it followed their own situations. Those already struggling before 2020 felt the pressure most, which suggests the young people needing most support after a crisis are often those who were vulnerable before it.

There are limits. This is an observational study, so it shows a link, not proof that stress caused the change. It was carried out in Germany, with its own lockdown rules, and it measured epigenetic age at two points only. The researchers have not shown whether the change lasts or reverses, and none of the reports gives a figure in years for how much older the adolescents' epigenetic age became.

Peepals timeline: The first saliva sample was taken before Germany's first lockdown in March 2020. The second came after the second lockdown, between winter 2021 and spring 2022, roughly two years later. The findings were reported in November 2026. The adolescents who were 14 to 16 when the study began in early 2020 would be about 20 to 22 years old in 2026 (2020 + 6 years), so the group the study flags is today's young adults. Our calculation from the reported figures.

Short-term: The study adds to the case for treating social contact as a health need for teenagers during emergencies, not an extra.

Long-term: The researchers have not shown whether the faster ageing seen in adolescents lasts. Follow-up of the same group, which the TwinLife project is set up to do, will show whether the effect fades or persists into adult life.

Who is affected: People who were teenagers during the pandemic, now in their early twenties, their families and teachers, and health planners. The study was in Germany, but school closures and isolation were shared by young people in many countries, including India.

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