For certain conditions, those who were more disadvantaged had twice as high a risk of developing age-associated diseases.
People with a good socioeconomic background tend to show fewer signs of biological ageing, according to a new study. Researchers from the UK studied different cohorts of patients and looked at 83 diseases known to be linked to ageing, such as osteoporosis, cataracts, or an enlarged prostate and blood tests measuring proteins circulating in the blood’s plasma. They then analysed the patients' data related to their social and economic background such as education level, quality of neighbourhood life, or household income. Those who were the least privileged showed a 20 per cent higher risk of disease compared to their more privileged counterparts, according to the findings published in the journal Nature Medicine. "For decades, we’ve known that social advantage is linked to better health, but our findings suggest it may also slow down the ageing process itself," Mika Kivimaki, a professor at the University College London (UCL) and the study’s lead author, said in a statement.
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