Health
Pregnancy speeds up aging process for young women, says study: ‘Remarkable finding’
The list of sacrifices women make for their children just got longer, as a new study reveals that pregnancy can accelerate aging in young mothers.
Research from the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health found that women who had been pregnant in the past looked “biologically older” than those who had never carried a child.
The effect was compounded in women who had more pregnancies compared to those who had fewer pregnancies, according to a press release from the university.
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Data was gathered for 1,735 young people (ages 20 to 22) in the Philippines.
The findings were published in the medical journey Proceedings of National Academy of Sciences.
A new study has shown that pregnancy can accelerate aging in young mothers. (iStock)
The researchers used new DNA tools — called “epigenetic clocks” — to analyze cellular information related to health, aging and mortality risk, the release stated.
The same effect on biological aging was not reported among fathers, which suggests that the effect is associated with pregnancy or breastfeeding.
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“We found that the number of pregnancies reported by young women was associated with faster biological aging using multiple measures that predict health and mortality later in life,” Calen Ryan, PhD, associate research scientist in the Columbia Aging Center and lead author of the study, told Fox News Digital.
“These effects persisted even when accounting for a range of social and environmental factors, but were not present for same-aged men from the same cohort.”
The effect was compounded in women who had more pregnancies compared to those who had fewer pregnancies. (iStock)
The effects were seen the most in “young, high-fertility women,” said Ryan.
“Our results are also the first to follow the same women through time, linking changes in each woman’s pregnancy number to changes in her biological age.”
“We’ve been so focused on outcomes for infants that we often forget to take care of the moms.”
The fact that the number of pregnancies is linked to changes at the molecular level — long before any health changes can be detected — is a “remarkable finding,” Ryan said.
“It highlights how we have been overlooking pregnancy and other key aspects of women’s health when we study the aging process.”
The researchers used new DNA tools — called “epigenetic clocks” — to analyze cellular information related to health, aging and mortality risk. (iStock)
Dr. Marc Siegel, clinical professor of medicine at NYU Langone Medical Center and a Fox News medical contributor, was not involved in the study but reviewed the findings.
“The effects aren’t that pronounced, but they are in keeping with what we know about pregnancy — a period of inflammation, decreased overall immune function, rapid cell turnover, and increased stress and metabolic function,” he told Fox News Digital.
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“All of this contributes to cellular aging, where metabolic functions begin to decline.”
Longer-term studies would need to be done to determine whether the effects are reversible over time, Siegel noted.
Study limitations
The study did have some limitations, according to Ryan.
The individuals in Columbia’s study were “quite young,” he said, and came from a different sociocultural context than where the measures were developed.
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“We need to continue to study the extent to which these measures of biological aging translate to health outcomes as women age in the context of the Philippines, where this study was carried out,” Ryan told Fox News Digital.
“We still have a lot to learn about the role of pregnancy and other aspects of reproduction in the aging process.”
The same effect on biological aging was not reported among fathers, which suggests that the effect is associated with pregnancy or breastfeeding. (iStock)
The overall effects were small, Ryan said, and they could be linked, potentially, to high fertility and unreliable access to health care and adequate nutrition.
It’s not yet clear how the accelerated aging will impact women’s health or mortality as they grow older.
“Strong medical, social and nutritional support for new moms is always the best policy over the long run.”
“The message here is not all doom and gloom — but it does highlight the fact that we’ve been so focused on outcomes for infants that we often forget to take care of the moms,” he said.
Rather than relying on anecdotal stories, Ryan said he hopes studies like this one promote a better understanding of how, when and to what extent women’s biology is changed by pregnancy — and perhaps point toward ways to mitigate those effects.
Ryan added, “Strong medical, social and nutritional support for new moms is always the best policy over the long run.”
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Scientists have linked eating leafy green vegetables such as spinach, kale and broccoli to better lung health.
There are two primary forms of vitamin K found in foods. The primary kind is vitamin K1, found mainly in vegetables, which plays a major role in the body’s blood-clotting process.
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Vitamin K2 is found in fermented foods, certain dairy products, eggs and meats and helps regulate calcium in the body and supports bone health.
Researchers at Australia’s Edith Cowan University examined whether dietary intake of vitamins K1 and K2 was associated with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), asthma and lung function.
Leafy green vegetables are high in vitamin K1, a nutrient that researchers have observed conributes to improved lung health. (iStock)
“Chronic respiratory diseases, including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma, are among the most prevalent noncommunicable diseases worldwide and were the third leading cause of death in 2019, accounting for 4 million deaths and affecting 454.6 million individuals globally,” the scientists reported in the introduction to their study, published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
“Although asthma and COPD can be managed with available treatments, neither condition is curable, underscoring the need for effective prevention strategies,” they added.
The leading cause of COPD is smoking, the Mayo Clinic reported. Exposure to other irritants, such as dust, chemicals and pollution, can also cause it.
The researchers analyzed data from 179,062 participants over a 10-and-a-half-year period and concluded that, “Higher dietary vitamin K1 intake was associated with better lung function and a lower rate of COPD.”
Researchers found that people who increased their vitamin K1 intake were less likely to develop COPD. (iStock)
Participants who consumed the most vitamin K1 had a 16% lower likelihood of COPD, the researchers observed. The effects were more pronounced in smokers and participants with high-risk occupations.
Consumption of vitamin K2 did not result in lower COPD rates.
“No association was observed for vitamin K1 or vitamin K2 intakes and asthma,” the researchers also wrote.
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Associate Professor Marc Sim, who was involved in the study, said that it’s likely Vitamin K activates a protein that may help keep lung tissue flexible and prevent damage.
Because the study was observational, it cannot prove that vitamin K1 directly reduces COPD risk, only that higher intake was associated with better lung health.
Researchers have associated higher consumption of leafy green vegetables with better lung function. (iStock)
Just one extra serving of leafy greens “is an achievable way to boost your vitamin K1 intake,” said Chengfeng Li, one of the study’s researchers.
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Other foods rich in vitamin K1 include collard greens, Swiss chard, Brussels sprouts and turnip greens.
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Health
Switching from cigarettes to vapes linked to higher risk of major eye diseases, large study finds
US cigarette smoking drops to record low, vaping and nicotine pouch use surges
Fox News medical analyst Dr. Marc Siegel discusses a New England Journal of Medicine study reporting US adult cigarette smoking rates dropped to a record low of 9.9% in 2024. Siegel warns about the addictive nature of vaping and nicotine pouches, which contain high levels of nicotine. He expresses concern over potential GI tract and heart issues, stressing social media’s role in promoting these products to younger generations.
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Switching from cigarettes to electronic vapes is often seen as a healthier move, but a massive nationwide study published in the American Journal of Ophthalmology suggests that smokeless alternatives could increase the risk of serious eye diseases compared to quitting nicotine altogether.
Researchers from the Korea University College of Medicine in Seoul, South Korea, analyzed health data from a group of 179,273 adults through the Korean National Health Insurance Service, according to a press release.
All participants had smoked traditional cigarettes between 2011 and 2012 and then quit smoking by 2018 or 2019, they reported.
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To ensure a fair comparison, the researchers paired up participants who shared similar backgrounds, including their age, gender, medical history, existing health conditions and general lifestyle habits.
Switching from cigarettes to electronic vapes is often seen as a healthier move, but a large study suggests it could pose a risk to eye health. (iStock)
This process created a balanced group of 32,316 matched participants, who were divided into two categories: complete quitters who stopped using all nicotine products and those who transitioned to smokeless nicotine products, such as vapes.
The researchers followed the participants for an average of 4.6 years to determine whether they developed eye conditions, including cataracts, glaucoma, age-related macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy and focus-related eyesight disorders.
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Over the tracking period, the group experienced a total of 6,328 major eye disease events. People who quit nicotine entirely had the lowest disease rate in the study, at 41.1 cases per 1,000 person-years (a measure that accounts for both the number of people in the study and how long they were followed).
In comparison, that rate rose to 44 cases for individuals who had switched over to smokeless alternatives like vapes.
The people included in the study were divided into two main categories: complete quitters who stopped using all nicotine products, and switchers who transitioned to smokeless tobacco or nicotine products, like vapes. (iStock)
Ultimately, the data showed that switching to alternative nicotine products carried a steady 7% increased risk of serious eye diseases compared to quitting nicotine completely.
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Most notably, those who switched faced a 24% higher risk of developing diabetic retinopathy, a condition that damages the blood vessels in the light-sensitive tissue at the back of the eye.
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Additionally, those who ditched cigarettes for vapes had a 7% higher risk of developing refractive and accommodation disorders, which affect the eye’s ability to focus clearly.
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“These findings challenge the assumption that substituting noncombustible nicotine or tobacco products for conventional cigarettes is visually harmless,” the researchers noted.
“These findings challenge the assumption that substituting noncombustible nicotine or tobacco products for conventional cigarettes is visually harmless,” the researchers noted. (iStock)
The authors did point out a few limitations of the research. Because this was a study looking back at health insurance data, it cannot definitively prove that vaping directly causes eye damage.
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Additionally, the study relied on people filling out questionnaires about their own smoking and vaping habits, which can sometimes lead to underreporting or simple memory errors.
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Still, the researchers concluded the findings suggest that replacing cigarettes with alternative nicotine products may not eliminate the risk of certain eye diseases.
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