Women with phobias molecular indicators are older than his years. In this premature aging researchers blame psychological stress, which can be shortened telomeres and thereby age of the cell.

There is darkness various phobias, and anyone can name a couple of the most famous, like claustro or arachnophobia. Perhaps, there is no object or situation that would not be connected to any kind of panic irrational fear. Phobias are common: according to statistics, for example, 8% of Americans suffer from at least one kind of phobia.

The psychological stress associated with phobias, like any stress, obviously, must somehow affect the health. To check this, researchers from the Hospital Brigham at Harvard University (USA) took blood samples from more than five thousand women aged from 42 to 69 years. Blood tests were compared with the data of psychological testing. It turned out that lady with phobias were on molecular markers older than his age - about six years.

In an article published in PLoS ONE, the researchers argue that the link between phobias and accelerated aging can be telomeres. The authors have paid special attention. These end fragments of chromosomes protect genetic information from damage during cell division. With age, the telomeres are shortened, and the risk of damage to genes increases. Telomere shortening, you can speed up oxidative stress and inflammation. In turn, the short telomeric areas increase the risk of cardiac, cancer and neurodegenerative diseases, especially at a certain age.

Psychological stress, according to scientists, can lead to inflammatory and oxidative damage of telomeres. However, as emphasized by the authors of the study, direct evidence linking stress with length of telomeres not. So this is only one possible explanation of how stress may reduce the life - albeit the most plausible one.

Phobias are the most vulnerable women and medium postalservice age: just then exacerbated concerns about fading youth. Well, perhaps a visit to a therapist, and receive antifamily sedative to help them to maintain if not the young beauty, even the young health.

Based on the materials of Medical Xpress.