Less Stress May Slow Aging

We all know that stress seems to age people. There's the old cliche of getting prematurely gray hair from stress, for example. For The Early Show medical correspondent Dr. Emily Senay, an apt illustration are "before" and "after" photos of U.S. presidents after they complete their terms of office.

But scientists don't fully understand how the mind affects the body.

Stress results in the production of a hormone called cortisol, which can have detrimental physical effects. Previous research has suggested stress has a negative effect on the immune system.

Senay reports that a new study in the proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences provides more evidence that chronic psychological stress speeds up the biological aging process.

Researchers compared the white blood cells in women who experienced severe long-term stress from caring for chronically-ill children to those of women who cared for healthy children. They found that the cells of women who reported chronic stress aged 10 years faster than than those of women who were not stressed out.

The researchers measured the wear and tear on the chromosomes within the white blood cells, specifically the length of structures called telomeres at the ends of the chromosomes. Telomeres get shorter and shorter each time a cell divides. This gradual shortening is seen as a kind of biological clock, because the cells eventually lose their ability to reproduce, which results in signs of aging such as wrinkles, diminished eyesight, and eventually, organ failure and death.

Yet, notes Senay, some mothers with sick children in the study did not report feeling stressed, and their cells did not age as quickly. Those cells had normal levels of telomere. They seemed naturally resilient.

Senay says that suggests that finding ways to manage stress can avoid potential biological damage.

A lot of variables go into determining how a person handles stress, and doctors can recommend a variety of approaches including meditation, yoga, behavioral therapy, lifestyle modification, and other stress-reduction techniques.

The researchers hope the new findings could potentially lead to new ways to detect and track the early physical effects of stress in our cells, enabling doctors to monitor attempts to reduce stress and its harmful effects, Senay adds.