Sleep-Disordered Breathing May Speed Up Aging

Sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) is an umbrella term used to describe various conditions that cause atypical respiratory patterns (e.g., sleep apnea) and result in the partial or complete cessation of regular breathing cycles throughout the night. Sleep-disordered breathing, and the sleep disruption caused by SDB, are associated with epigenetic age acceleration, according to a new study (Li et al., 2019) from Harvard Medical School...

"People's biological age might not be the same as their chronological age," Li said in a statement. "Individuals whose biological age is higher than their chronological age exhibit age acceleration or fast aging. In our study, we found that more severe sleep-disordered breathing is associated with epigenetic age acceleration. Our data provide biological evidence supporting adverse physiological and health effects of untreated sleep-disordered breathing." 

Read the entire article from Psychology Today here.