A new study based on the analysis of questionnaires of more than 2400 twins found that physically active adults are biologically younger than inactive ones - they have longer telomeres that are the caps at the end of the chromosomes. Telomeres tend to get shorter as people age and are used as an indicator of a peson's biological age.
The research team said the "differences in telomere length between active and inactive individuals cannot be explained by variations in genes, smoking, BMI and socioeconomic status", and the findings "could be used by clinicians to promote the potentially anti-aging effect of regular exercise". The study is published in the Archives of Internal Medicine, 28th issue.
In an editorial in the same issue, an expert said there could be other factors responsible for the biological differences between active and sedentary people, but the findings provide the evidence that telomere length might be targeted in studying ageing outcomes.
Source: "The Association Between Physical Activity in Leisure Time and Leukocyte Telomere Length."Arch Intern Med. 2008;168(2):154-158. ( full text via Athens)
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