Inflammaging: How Chronic Inflammation Drives Immune Aging (and What Helps)

What is inflammaging?

Inflammation is not inherently bad. In the short term it is how your body defends and repairs itself. The problem is when a faint version of that response never fully switches off. Inflammaging (a blend of "inflammation" and "aging") is the term scientists use for the chronic, low-grade, sterile inflammation that tends to accumulate with age, even without an obvious infection or injury.

The concept was introduced by immunologist Claudio Franceschi and colleagues, who noticed that markers of inflammation quietly climb over the decades and that managing this balance appears connected to how well people age. In their framing, inflammaging is a systemic, measurable feature of the aging process itself rather than a single illness (evidence: foundational concept, strong). It is best thought of as a biological tendency to keep score of accumulated stress over a lifetime.

Why inflammaging matters for healthy aging

Background inflammation is one of the ways the body's systems communicate about wear and tear. A large multidisciplinary review described chronic, low-grade inflammation as a common thread woven through many aspects of how the body changes across the lifespan (evidence: expert consensus review, strong). For everyday healthy aging, the practical takeaway is simpler: supporting a calmer, better-regulated internal environment is a reasonable goal, and much of that is within your control through daily habits.

Nothing here is about diagnosing or treating disease. Inflammaging is a normal aspect of biology, and the aim is to support the body's own healthy regulation of cellular and immune function as the years add up.

What drives inflammaging

Inflammaging is not caused by one thing. It is the sum of several age-related shifts that reinforce one another.

• Cellular senescence. As cells age or are stressed, some stop dividing but refuse to die. These "senescent" cells linger and release a mix of inflammatory signals often called the senescence-associated secretory phenotype, which can nudge neighboring tissue toward a more inflammatory state over time (evidence: mechanistic, strong).
• Mitochondrial dysfunction. Mitochondria are the tiny power plants inside cells. When they run less efficiently with age, they can generate more stress signals and fewer clean energy outputs (more below).
• Immune remodeling. The aging immune system gradually rebalances, with fewer fresh naive immune cells and a bias toward a low, persistent hum of activity, a shift sometimes called immunosenescence that overlaps closely with inflammaging.
• Visceral fat. Deep abdominal fat is metabolically active tissue. With age it can accumulate immune cells and secrete inflammatory messengers, making body composition a meaningful contributor to the overall inflammatory tone of aging (evidence: mechanistic and observational, moderate-strong).

The mitochondria-inflammation link

Mitochondria deserve special attention because they sit at the crossroads of energy and inflammation. Interestingly, mitochondria carry their own small loop of DNA, a leftover from their ancient bacterial origins. When mitochondria become damaged, fragments of that mitochondrial DNA can leak out of where they belong. Because it resembles bacterial DNA, the cell's innate immune sensors can read stray mitochondrial DNA as a danger signal, or "damage-associated molecular pattern," and mount a low-grade inflammatory response (evidence: mechanistic, strong). In other words, worn-out mitochondria can quietly act as internal alarm bells.

This is where cellular housekeeping comes in. Mitophagy is the body's built-in recycling program for identifying, tagging, and clearing out defective mitochondria so healthier ones can take their place. Efficient mitophagy helps keep damaged mitochondria and their DNA from lingering and triggering unnecessary alarm signals. Supporting this housekeeping process is one of the more compelling levers for healthy cellular aging, and it is precisely where diet, exercise, and certain nutrients enter the picture.

Evidence-based lifestyle levers

The most reliable ways to support a healthier inflammatory balance are unglamorous and free. Human evidence is strongest here.

• Move regularly. Structured exercise, including resistance training, is associated with more favorable levels of common inflammatory markers in middle-aged and older adults (evidence: meta-analysis, strong).
• Eat a polyphenol-rich pattern. Diets built around vegetables, fruits, legumes, olive oil, and other plant foods, such as a Mediterranean pattern, are linked to lower inflammatory markers in older adults (evidence: meta-analysis, strong). Polyphenols also matter because gut bacteria convert certain ones into beneficial compounds, including Urolithin A.
• Prioritize sleep. Poor or short sleep is associated with higher inflammatory signaling; a broad review of human studies tied sleep disturbance to elevated inflammatory markers (evidence: systematic review, strong).
• Don't smoke. Tobacco smoke is a well-established source of oxidative and inflammatory stress; avoiding it removes a major, avoidable driver.
• Support a healthy body composition. Reducing excess visceral fat through activity and diet lowers one of the tissues that actively contributes to background inflammation.

Driver of inflammaging and a supportive lifestyle lever

Where standardized Urolithin A fits

Urolithin A is a compound your gut bacteria produce when you eat polyphenols found in foods like pomegranates, berries, and walnuts. The catch is that many people carry gut bacteria that make little or none of it, which is why a standardized, directly bioavailable form has become a focus of research. Urolithin A is best understood as a mitophagy activator: it supports the cellular housekeeping process that clears out worn mitochondria. A first-in-human study reported that standardized Urolithin A was well tolerated and produced a molecular signature consistent with improved mitochondrial and cellular health (evidence: human trial, moderate).

Because mitochondria and immune aging are so tightly linked, researchers have also looked at Urolithin A and immune function. A 2025 randomized, placebo-controlled trial in midlife adults examined the mitophagy inducer Urolithin A and reported measurable shifts in markers of immune cell profiles and mitochondrial fitness (evidence: randomized controlled trial, emerging). This is an encouraging early signal in the context of healthy immune aging, not evidence that any supplement treats or prevents disease.

For people building a healthy-aging routine, standardized Urolithin A is a way to support mitophagy and normal mitochondrial function alongside the lifestyle levers above. SOMA Urolithin A gummies deliver a 1,000 mg dose in a simple daily format, and pair naturally with the movement, sleep, and diet habits that do the heaviest lifting.

Frequently asked questions

Is inflammaging a disease?
No. Inflammaging is a scientific term for the normal, low-grade rise in background inflammation that tends to accompany biological aging. It is a feature of getting older, not a diagnosis, and the goal is to support the body's healthy self-regulation rather than to treat any condition.

Can I measure my own inflammaging?
There is no single at-home test. Clinicians sometimes look at general inflammatory markers, but these move for many reasons. For most people, focusing on consistent healthy habits is more useful than chasing one number.

What is the single most effective thing I can do?
Regular physical activity has some of the strongest human evidence for supporting a healthier inflammatory balance, and it also supports mitochondrial health. Pair it with good sleep and a plant-forward diet for compounding benefits.

How does Urolithin A relate to inflammaging?
Urolithin A supports mitophagy, the housekeeping process that clears worn mitochondria. Since dysfunctional mitochondria are one contributor to age-related inflammatory signaling, supporting mitophagy is a plausible way to support healthy cellular and immune aging as part of a broader routine.

Do I still need lifestyle changes if I take a supplement?
Yes. Standardized Urolithin A is designed to complement, not replace, the fundamentals. Exercise, sleep, not smoking, and a polyphenol-rich diet remain the foundation of healthy aging, with supplementation as supportive reinforcement.

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