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If you’re a woman, having children might be the key to a longer life.
A new study from SFU suggests the number of children a woman has might slow
down the rate at which her body ages – and the more babies she has, the better.
Having multiple children is associated with longer telomeres in mothers, which are
the tips found at the end of each DNA strand.
Telomeres are indicative of cellular aging, and longer ones are associated with longevity.
SFU Health Sciences professor Pablo Nepomnaschy said their findings contradict the
age-old theory that having more children speeds up the aging process.
“The slower pace of telomere shortening found in the study participants who have more
children however, may be attributed to the dramatic increase in estrogen, a hormone
produced during pregnancy.”
“Estrogen functions as a potent antioxidant that protects cells against telomere
shortening.”
The study assessed the number of children born to 75 women in rural Guatemalan
communities and their telomere lengths. At 13-year intervals, saliva samples and
cheek swabs were taken to examine their telomere lengths. This is the first study to
examine an association with the number of surviving children and telomere length.
But it might not be strictly biological in nature – environment might also be a factor
in the longevity of women with multiple children.
“The women we followed over the course of the study were from natural fertility
populations where mothers who bear numerous children receive more social support
from their relatives and friends,” said Nepomnaschy.
“Greater support leads to an increase in the amount of metabolic energy that can be
allocated to tissue maintenance, thereby slowing down the process of aging.”
The study by co-authors Nepomnaschy and postdoctoral researcher Cindy Barha
is published in Plos One.
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