Aging
Telomere Length Differences by Sexual Orientation in Adults from the Resource for Genetic Epidemiology Research on Aging Cohort Adovich S. Rivera* Adovich Rivera Chun R. Chao Rulin C. Hechter
Background: The weathering hypothesis proposes that marginalized people experience faster biologic aging due to lifelong experience with stigma and stress which translates to chronic disease disparities. Prior studies have shown disparities in telomere length (TL) by race & ethnicity and socioeconomic status. We assessed differences in TL by sexual orientation in a cohort of insured adults from California.
Methods: We used cross-sectional data from the Resource for Genetic Epidemiology Research on Aging (2008-2011). TL was expressed as log2-transformed telomeric DNA to beta-globin single copy gene ratio (LTS). With linear regression models stratified by binary gender/sex, we calculated differences by sexual orientation (bisexual, gay/lesbian, straight) after adjusting for baseline age and socio-demographics. Oaxaca decomposition was used to explore drivers of significant disparities.
Results: We included 102,258 eligible individuals with mean baseline age of 63.4 years (SD: 14.5). The cohort was 58% female and 7.6% sexual minorities. Females showed no significant differences in age-adjusted LTS by sexual orientation (bisexual: 0.04, 95%CI: 0.004, 0.07; lesbian: 0.04, 95%CI: 0.01, 0.06; straight: 0.03, 95%CI: 0.027, 0.034) and the lack of difference persisted even after adjustment for all socio-demographic variables. Gay (-0.07, 95%CI: -0.09, -0.05) but not bisexual (-0.04, 95%CI: -0.08, -0.01) men had significantly shorter age-adjusted LTS compared to straight men (-0.03, 95%CI: -0.034, 0-0.026). This difference persisted even after full adjustment (gay-straight difference: -0.04, 95%CI: -0.06, -0.02). Decomposition showed that smoking and marital status were drivers of the gay-straight disparity.
Conclusion: Gay men had significantly shorter telomeres than straight men. Other sexual minorities had values comparable to their straight counterparts. Confirmatory studies using other aging measures and studies on health implications and social mechanisms are warranted.
