Research
Hormonal
Higher telomerase activity is independently associated with better health status (defined as absence of chronic diseases and high functional independence) in the elderly, regardless of telomere length.
Focus on maintaining high telomerase activity through a healthy lifestyle, particularly a Mediterranean diet, as this enzyme activity is a strong independent predictor of remaining disease-free and functionally independent in old age.
ModerateSupportsMEDIUM confidence
Telomerase activity was independently associated with LTL (p = 0.007) and negatively modulated by inflammation and oxidative stress... telomerase levels were associated with healthy status independently of multiple covariates (p = 0.048).
Why this rating
Observational data showing association, not causation. The sample size is modest.
Source
Mediterranean Diet, Telomere Maintenance and Health Status among Elderly
Virginia Boccardi et al. · PLoS ONE · 2013
DOI 10.1371/journal.pone.0062781
cross_sectional · n=217Cited 190×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
More from this paper
- High adherence to a Mediterranean diet is associated with longer leukocyte telomere length (LTL) and higher PBMC telomerase activity in elderly individuals, independent of age, gender, and smoking status.Moderate
- High adherence to a Mediterranean diet is associated with lower levels of inflammatory markers (CRP, IL-6, TNF-α) and oxidative stress (nitrotyrosine) in the elderly.Moderate
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