Research

Mixed

Longer leukocyte telomere length (LTL) is associated with a significantly lower risk of all-cause mortality and coronary heart disease (CHD) mortality in elderly adults.

Leukocyte telomere length is a biomarker of biological aging and cardiovascular health. This study shows that longer telomeres are associated with lower mortality risk. While you cannot directly 'take' telomere length, maintaining a healthy lifestyle (not smoking, moderate alcohol, healthy diet) is associated with longer telomeres and lower mortality risk. Focus on these modifiable factors rather than trying to directly manipulate telomere length.

GoodSupportsHIGH confidence
Compared to individuals in the shortest tertile, those in the longest tertile of LTL had a 42% lower risk of death from all-causes (HR 0.58; 95% CI: 0.39–0.88) and 58% lower risk of death from CHD (HR 0.42; 95%CI: 0.19–0.97).
Dénes Stefler et al. · Scientific Reports · 2018

Why this rating

Prospective cohort study with 12-year follow-up and multivariable adjustment, though observational nature limits causal inference.

Source

Leukocyte telomere length and risk of coronary heart disease and stroke mortality: prospective evidence from a Russian cohort

Dénes Stefler et al. · Scientific Reports · 2018

DOI 10.1038/s41598-018-35122-y

cohort · n=1144Cited 23×
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DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10

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