MEN: Why your AGE and LENGTH matters...

...to your risk of developing heart disease. I'm talking about your telomeres, by the way!


ANTI-AGING / ANTI- HEART DISEASE

Not only do telomeres shorten with age (like a candle burning at both ends- each cell replication shortens the telomeres hence indicating the passage of time) but now it seems that men with short telomeres may also have a higher risk of developing heart disease. Although telomere length has not been confirmed as a predictive marker of heart disease, the study authors believe that this result has its implications.


"The main implication of the findings is perhaps a better understanding of why some people develop heart disease early and some people, despite having similar risk factors, never develop or develop it later," said study author Dr. Nilesh J. Samani, British Heart Foundation chair of cardiology at the University of Leicester, in the United Kingdom.


The article appeared to be promoting the use of statins in the treatment of men at risk of heart disease as the medical journal The Lancet published the paper (Jan 13th) describing a study where the authors compared the telomere lengths of white blood cells in hight risk middle aged men, out of whom 484 subsequently developed coronary heart disease with 1058 who didn't develop the condition. The analysis of the results showed that in the men who were taking statins but had short telomeres, the risk of developing heart disease was considerably lowered. The authors also postulate that the short telomere lengths may lead to the heart disease and that statins may interact with the telomere length, causing the rate of loss to slow.


CAUTIONARY NOTE

Please note that these results are not conclusive and do not take medication not prescribed by your physician. Note that you should also know that every drug has its adverse effects which may affect some individuals more severely than others when consumed over the same period of time.