Long-term unemployment is associated with short telomeres in 31-year-old men: an observational study in the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1966

OBJECTIVE: Life stress resulting from early-life experiences and domestic stress is linked with shorter leukocyte telomere length (LTL), but evidence on employment-related stress is scarce. We explored whether unemployment in early adulthood is associated with shorter LTL, a potential biomarker of premature aging. METHODS: We used data from 5620 men and women belonging to the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1966. Individually registered unemployment days in 1995-97 were compared with data on biological, behavioral and socioeconomic health predictors and existing medical conditions obtained by surveys and clinical examinations at follow-up in 1997-98. Mean LTL at follow-up was measured by multiplex quantitative real-time PCR. We calculated odds ratios and their 95% confidence intervals (CI) of belonging to the sex-stratified shortest decile of standardized relative mean LTL according to the categories of: 0, <260, <500 and over 500 unemployment days, representing 0, <1, <2 and over 2 calendar years. RESULTS: Among men, unemployment exceeding 500 days during three years was associated with having shorter LTL at follow-up, compared to being continuously employed. The corresponding odds ratio was 2.61 (95% CI 1.16 to 5.85) in the fully adjusted model. Such an association was not found among women in this study. CONCLUSIONS: Long-term unemployment in early adulthood is associated with shorter LTL among men