The study found that individuals with the shortest telomeres, or about 10 percent of the study’s participants, were 23 percent more likely to die within three years than those with longer telomeres. The findings are trickier than expected, however. Researchers are still unsure whether telomere length is just a marker of aging, like gray hair or wrinkles, or if it’s an active factor in whether a person is more likely to have a disease like Alzheimer’s or die.
There’s also another key player in the game: telomerase.
Telomerase is an enzyme that lengthens telomeres and keeps them from wearing out too fast or too early. But with constant cell division, telomerase levels are depleted, enabling telomeres to shorten. It stands to reason that if science found a way to increase telomerase production, telomeres would remain long, lengthening life spans and possibly reducing the risk of some diseases.
In fact, one 2010 study on aging published in Nature performed on rodents seems to confirm that theory. Mice engineered to lack telomerase aged prematurely and became decrepit. But when the enzyme was replaced, they bounced back to health. By reawakening telomerase in human cells where it’s stopped working, normal human aging could be slowed. “This has implications for thinking about telomerase as a serious anti-aging intervention,” said Ronald DePinho, a cancer geneticist who led the study.
However, there are still serious doubts about whether reversing or slowing down aging via telomerase activity is the answer. Because while telomerase does lengthen telomeres, in humans with cancer, the enzyme helps existing tumors grow faster. At this stage, it doesn’t seem we know enough about safely harnessing telomerase to ensure that it works only to lengthen telomeres and doesn’t actually stimulate cancer.
How Can I Lengthen My Telomeres and Slow Aging?
While science still isn’t 100 percent sure how telomere length affects how we age, it’s clear that the longer our telomeres are, the better. The good news is that there are a variety of lifestyle changes you can make today to lengthen your telomeres. (4)
1. Control and Reduce Stress
Several studies have linked chronic stress to shorter telomeres. (5) A 2004 study compared healthy women who were mothers of healthy children (the control moms) and those who cared for chronically ill children (caregiving mothers). On average, the caregiving mothers had telomeres that were 10 years shorter than the control moms. (6) That is, their cells behaved as if one decade older.
Another study that examined African-American boys found that those who came from stressful environments had telomeres that were about 40 percent shorter than peers from stable homes. (7)
The takeaway? Chronic stress doesn’t just put you in a bad mood; it contributes to aging in a very real way. Exercising regularly, getting enough sleep and carving out time for yourself daily are all easy ways to help bust stress.
2. Exercise Regularly
From boosting happiness to providing an energy boost, the benefits of exercise are well documented. Now there’s another reason to hit the gym. A recent study found that a person who did some type of exercise was about 3 percent less likely to have super short telomeres than a person who didn’t exercise at all. (8)