Leukocyte Telomere and Maternal Age at Birth of Last Child Is Associated With Women's Longevity, Study Suggests

Dec, 2020 - By WMR

According to a new study, researchers have reported that leukocyte telomere length may provide detailed insights about longevity in women and also highlighted about maternal age and how the maternal age at the birth of last child impacts telomere length and long-term health in women. Telomeres can be defined as reiterating DNA-protein complexes that safeguards the end of chromosomes and it plays an important role in sustaining genomic stability. Moreover, several previous studies has linked woman's leukocyte telomere length with her estimated lifespan, however the studies were on smaller scale.

In this large-scale study, researchers involved over 1,200 peri-menopausal and postmenopausal women of several backgrounds and ethnicities from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Researchers also informed that previous studies did not consider socio-demographic factor, however this new study considered socio-demographic factors correlated to childbearing patterns and health decisions.

After the assessment, researchers confirmed that maternal age during last birth is supportively linked with telomere length, they suggested that women who had their last child birth in late in life exhibited longer telomeres, a biomarker that indicates about longevity and long-term health. However, the finding was limited to women with one or two live births or women who used oral contraceptives.

Stephanie Faubion stated, “More research is needed to determine whether older maternal age at last birth causes telomeres to lengthen or whether telomere length serves as a proxy for general health and corresponds with a woman's ability to have a child at a later age”.