New Orleans researchers found that exposure to violence and severe emotional disruption in families “significantly” shortened the length of telomeres in children. Telomeres are protective mechanisms for chromosomes in DNA that are also important with respect to aging and cancer. The study in Pediatrics examined children aged 5 to 15, and compared the length of their telomeres relative to caregiver reports about children’s exposures to serious problems at home. “Witnessing family violence exerted a particularly potent impact,” noted the researchers, and concluded that “the family ecology may be an important target for interventions to reduce the biological impact of adversity in the lives of children.”
The Association of Telomere Length With Family Violence and Disruption (Drury, Stacy et al. Pediatrics. June 2014. doi: 10.1542/peds.2013-3415.)