Childhood adversity heightens the impact of later-life caregiving stress on telomere length and inflammation

Telomeres » Institutional Study » Childhood adversity heightens the impact of later-life caregiving stress on telomere length and inflammation

March 20, 2017 | Amy | Leave a comment

Peer-Reviewed Scientific Journal:
Psychosomatic Medicine

Size of study:
132 adults, half were dementia caregivers, half were not

Summary
The presence of multiple childhood adversities was related to both heightened IL-6, an inflammatory cytokine, and shorter telomeres even after adjusting for multiple potential confounding factors such as age, gender, BMI, exercise, sleep and caregiver status. This affect was magnified in those subjects that were family caregivers for a dementia patient. The telomere difference between those subjects that reported multiple childhood adversities vs. those that did not could translate into a 7–15 year difference in lifespan.

Link to study

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