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Age and Ageing Advance Access originally published online on June 25, 2009
Age and Ageing 2009 38(5):553-558; doi:10.1093/ageing/afp098
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© The Author 2009. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the British Geriatrics Society. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oxfordjournals.org

Older men with higher self-rated socioeconomic status have shorter telomeres

Jean Woo1, Eddie W. C. Suen1, Jason C. S. Leung2, Nelson L. S. Tang3 and Shah Ebrahim4

1 Department of Medicine & Therapeutics, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, 9/F, Prince of Wales Hospital, Shatin, N.T., Hong Kong
2 Jockey Club Centre for Osteoporosis Care and Control, 3/F, School of Public Health, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Prince of Wales Hospital, Shatin, N.T., Hong Kong
3 Department of Chemical Pathology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Prince of Wales Hospital, Shatin, N.T., Hong Kong
4 London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, University of London, Room 109, Keppel Street Building, Keppel Street, London WC1E 7HT, UK

Address correspondence to: J. Woo. Tel: (+852) 2632 3493; Fax: (+852) 2637 3852. Email: jeanwoowong{at}cuhk.edu.hk

Background: previous studies examining the relationship between socioeconomic status and telomere length showed conflicting results, one study finding shorter telomere length in subjects with lower socioeconomic status and one showing no relationship.

Design: cross-sectional study.

Setting: community-living elderly Chinese in Hong Kong.

Objective: this study examines the relationship between self-rated social economic status and telomere length in Hong Kong Chinese men and women aged 65 years and over living in the community.

Subjects and method: information was collected from 958 men and 978 women regarding possible confounding factors such as the presence of chronic diseases, smoking, physical activity level, dietary intake and body mass index. Telomere length was measured by quantitative PCR.

Result: in men only, after adjustment for age and other confounding factors, a higher ranking in community standing was associated with shorter telomere length.

Conclusion: men with higher self-rated socioeconomic status have shorter telomeres, possibly mediated through psychosocial rather than lifestyle factors or the presence of chronic disease. There may be cultural ethnic and age-related differences in social determinants of health.

Keywords: telomere length, socioeconomic status, elderly Chinese, elderly

Received 21 May 2008; accepted in revised form 12 April 2009.


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