Why Latinos Age Slower Than Other Ethnicities

Share On Social!

Latinos age more slowly at the molecular level than other ethnic groups, according to a new study, the L.A. Times and Raycom News Network report.

Researchers studied the DNA from blood of 6,000 people from two African groups, African Americans, Caucasians, East Asians, Latinos and Tsimane, an indigenous people in Bolivia. The DNA from blood reveals the health of a person’s immune system.

The blood of Latinos and the Tsimane aged more slowly than the blood of other groups.

Why?

Latinos’ slower aging may result from their Native American ancestry, the study’s main author, Steve Horvath of the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, told the L.A. Times.

The process cannot be explained by Latinos’ diet, education, obesity or socioeconomic status, factors for which the researchers adjusted.

“We suspect that Latinos’ slower aging rate helps neutralize their higher health risks, particularly those related to obesity and inflammation,” Horvath said in a news release. “Our findings strongly suggest that genetic or environmental factors linked to ethnicity may influence how quickly a person ages and how long they live.”

The new study contributes to the long-standing mystery of the “Hispanic Paradox.” Latinos, despite facing higher rates of diabetes, obesity, and certain cancers, live an average of three years longer than Caucasians. Latinos have a life expectancy of 82 versus 79.

“Latinos live longer than Caucasians, despite experiencing higher rates of diabetes and other diseases,” Horvath said. “Our study helps explain this by demonstrating that Latinos age more slowly at the molecular level.”

Horvath and his colleagues next plan to study the aging rate of other human tissues and to identify the molecular mechanism that protects Latinos from aging.