Smoking shortens fragments present on cells of the immune system, and their length is an indicator of longevity.
- Smoking shortens segments of white blood cells called telomeres.
- However, the shorter they are, the less cells are renewed and the more aging accelerates.
- The more a person smokes, the greater this effect and conversely, stopping smoking helps reduce the risk of shortening.
This is another good reason to quit smoking. A study, presented during the Congress of the European Society of Respiratory Diseases, shows that smoking accelerates aging. In smokers, the telomeres of immune cells are shorter, but these fragments of chromosomes are linked to aging and the ability of cells to repair and regenerate.
Smoking: how to demonstrate its effects on aging?
“Telomeres are like the plastic or metal sheaths at the end of shoelaces, which prevent the shoelaces from fraying, compare the researchers in a press release. These are repetitive DNA sequences that protect the ends of chromosomes.”They shorten each time a cell divides, until the point where they are so short that the cell can no longer divide properly and dies.”It’s part of the aging process.”, indicate the authors of the study. Previous research has pointed out that the length of telomeres in white blood cells is associated with smoking, but none has shown that smoking is actually responsible for their shortening.
The more we smoke, the more aging accelerates
In this work, researchers observed data from nearly 500,000 people. They used a method called Mendelian randomization, which uses variations in genes inherited from parents, to infer how exposure to a modifiable environmental factor is linked to disease. “Mendelian randomization (…) thus allows researchers to determine whether a particular factor is the cause of a disease, rather than simply being associated with it., they add. Data analysis confirmed their hypotheses: “we found that current smoking status was statistically significantly associated with shorter leukocyte telomere length, whereas former smokers and never smokers did not have significantly shorter leukocyte telomere length“said Dr. Siyu Dai, co-author of the study. They also noticed that the amount of cigarettes smoked was correlated with telomere length.”The more cigarettes you smoke, the stronger the shortening effect.”he summarizes.
New proof of the benefits of quitting smoking
Conversely, the authors explain that stopping smoking can stop the phenomenon and reduce the risk of premature aging. “In recent years, observational studies have linked shortened leukocyte telomere length to many diseases, such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes and muscle loss, completes the specialist. This means that the effect of smoking on telomere length likely plays a critical role in these diseases, although further research is needed.” He recalls that the benefits of stopping smoking are multiple, and that it is important to strengthen support for cessation in health policies to “creating a smoke-free environment for the next generation”.
