Disentangling the relationship between biological age and frailty in community-dwelling older Mexican adults

ABSTRACT OBJECTIVE Older adults have heterogeneous aging rates. Here, we explored the impact of biological age (BA) and accelerated aging on frailty in community-dwelling older adults. METHODS We assessed 735 community-dwelling older adults from the Coyocan Cohort. BA was measured using AnthropoAge, accelerated aging with AnthropoAgeAccel, and frailty using both Fried’s phenotype and the frailty index. We explored the association of BA and accelerated aging (AnthropoAgeAccel ≥0) with frailty at baseline and characterized the impact of both on body composition and physical function. We also explored accelerated aging as a risk factor for frailty progression after 3-years of follow-up. RESULTS Older adults with accelerated aging have higher frailty prevalence and indices, lower handgrip strength and gait speed. AnthropoAgeAccel was associated with higher frailty indices (β=0.0053, 95%CI 0.0027-0.0079), and increased odds of frailty at baseline (OR 1.16, 95%CI 1.09-1.25). We observed a sexual dimorphism in body composition and physical function linked to accelerated aging in non-frail participants; however, this dimorphism was absent in pre-frail/frail participants. Accelerated aging at baseline was associated with higher risk of frailty progression over time (OR 1.74, 95%CI 1.11-2.75). CONCLUSIONS Despite being intertwined, biological accelerated aging is largely independent of frailty in community-dwelling older adults.