NIH study: multivitamin use associated with telomere length

March 19, 2009 | Source: KurzweilAI

Multivitamin use is positively associated with telomere length in women, a National Institute of Health study has found.

A telomere is a DNA region at the end of a chromosome that protects the end from destruction. Longer length has been positively correlated with longevity. In the study, the relative telomere length of leukocyte DNA was on average 5.1% longer among daily multivitamin users, compared to nonusers.

Multivitamin supplements represent a major source of micronutrients, which may affect telomere length by modulating oxidative stress and chronic inflammation.

Source: The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (March 11, 2009), doi:10.3945/ajcn.2008.26986