Telomeres and social justice

[ribozyme]

smh.com.au/news/World/The-poor-age-faster-than-the-rich-study/2006/07/21/1153166552145.html

Does anyone find this morally wrong. I wonder what causes the differential in telomere length. Any hypotheses?

Each time a cell divides, telomeres shorten. The loss is associated with ageing which is why telomeres are thought to hold the secrets of youth and the ageing process.

The researchers compared telomere length of 1,552 women twins in Britain between the ages of 18 and 75 who were assigned to one of five groups based on National Statistics’ Socio-Economic Classification.

Even after adjusting for factors such as obesity, smoking and exercise, which can also influence ageing, the scientists found that telomeres in women of lower economic status were significantly shorter.

The average difference was equivalent to about seven years of telomere loss, which also could not be explained by education or income, according to the study published in the journal Ageing Cell.

“This is equivalent to what could be considered an extra seven years of biological ageing,” Spector told a news conference.

“We are talking about a seven-year difference in telomere loss between people of the same age, same body mass index, same smoking status, same exercise status who happen to be in a manual job or non-manual job, which roughly divides the social classes,” he added.

Well, maybe Gottfredson is wrong with proposing IQ as a reason for the health differential between social classes although it was an interesting contribution in trying to explain the causal nexus. She does note that when the poor have equal access to health care resources (e.g. universal health care), however, it does not close social class inequalities in health.

udel.edu/educ/gottfredson/reprints/2004fundamentalcause.pdf

5’ TTAGGG 3’ your it.

 

[KarenNC]

smh.com.au/news/World/The-poor-age-faster-than-the-rich-study/2006/07/21/1153166552145.html

Does anyone find this morally wrong.

It is something that showed up as part of a scientific study. In what way is that either morally wrong or morally right rather than simply “being”?

I wonder what causes the differential in telomere length. Any hypotheses?

Well you could start with the hypotheses that the scientists who did the study listed in the article—
Spector suspects that lower socio-economic status has an impact on telomere dynamics. “The idea is that psychological stress itself or the loss of control might have a biological impact,” he said. “It might raise levels of oxidative stress in the body and make cells turn over more quickly.”

Well, maybe Gottfredson is wrong with proposing IQ as a reason for the health differential between social classes although it was an interesting contribution in trying to explain the causal nexus. She does note that when the poor have equal access to health care resources (e.g. universal health care), however, it does not close social class inequalities in health.

udel.edu/educ/gottfredson/reprints/2004fundamentalcause.pdf

Universal health care would affect only one aspect of the life of someone in a lower socioeconomic class. It deals with treating the diseases, but not necessarily the factors that contribute to their development (type of employment, type of affordable diet, living conditions, behavioral expectations by peers, etc).

 

[strngrnrth]

Poor means without resources. Some resources reduce stress to the body, slowing the rate of cell death. Cells reproduce by copying their inside organelles, stretching, splitting, healing and filling out again. Each part of the process is subject to the chance of imperfections. Fewer cells dying means fewer cells reproducing to replace them. Since most random changes will be mistakes, not improvements (in fact, an accidental improvement of a reproducing damaged cell is extremely improbable), our best cells are normally our first ones. Later in life we have more damaged cells. So the article just means that when we can’t afford to hold on to our baby cells, we don’t. Only a few people can. Eternal youth is a luxury we all would like to be able to buy. I don’t have it.