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Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter
Monday, March 4, 2024
Researchers report that school not only makes you smarter, but also helps you live longer.
Studies have found that people with more education tend to age more slowly and live longer than those with less education.
A report published March 1 in the journal found that higher levels of education are significantly associated with slower aging and lower mortality risk. JAMA network open.
In fact, additional schooling every two years has been shown to slow the pace of aging by 2% to 3%. This corresponds to a reduction in the risk of premature death of approximately 10%.
Researchers say this is the first study to link educational performance to the rate of aging and timing of death.
“We've known for a long time that people with higher levels of education tend to live longer,” said Daniel Belsky, senior research scientist and associate professor of epidemiology at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health in New York City.
“However, there are many challenges to understanding how this happens and, importantly, whether interventions that promote educational attainment contribute to healthy longevity,” Professor Belsky said. the university added in a news release.
In this study, researchers used data from the Framingham Heart Study, an ongoing project first started in 1948 that tracks the health status of residents of the town of Framingham, Massachusetts. This research is currently being conducted over three generations.
How to measure the speed of aging, researchers analyzed the genetic data of Framingham study participants using a genetic “clock” test that acts like a speedometer for the aging process. This test basically measures how quickly or slowly a person's body changes as they age.
The researchers then compared the genetic aging data with the amount of education each person in the study received compared to their parents and siblings.
The researchers said the study could then explain differences in educational attainment and economic power between families.
“These study designs allow us to control for differences between families and isolate the effects of education,” said lead researcher Gloria Graf, an epidemiology doctoral student at Columbia University.
By comparing education and aging data with participants' records of how long they lived, researchers were able to link longer lifespans to slower aging rates in more educated people.
Graff said up to half of the effect of education on mortality risk could be explained by healthy aging trajectories in highly educated participants.
“Our findings support the hypothesis that interventions to promote educational attainment slow the pace of biological aging and promote longevity,” Graf said.
But more research is needed to confirm this relationship and explain why education can help people age more gracefully, Belsky said.
“Ultimately, we need experimental evidence to support our findings,” Belsky said.
Source: Columbia University, News Release, March 1, 2024
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