ArticlePsychosomatic medicine
The Relation of Optimism to Relative Telomere Length in Older Men and Women.
Article in Psychosomatic medicine. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
4 citing papers in PubMed, 11 citations in OpenAlex.
- Positive psychological well-being and cardiovascular health.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2024Review
- Socioeconomic, Behavioural, and Social Health Correlates of Optimism and Pessimism in Older Men and Women: A Cross-Sectional Study.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2023Article
- Optimism and risk of mortality among African-Americans: The Jackson heart study.Preventive medicine · 2022Article
- Optimism and telomere length among African American adults in the Jackson Heart Study.Psychoneuroendocrinology · 2021Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
12 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
objectiveMounting evidence suggests that higher optimism is associated with reduced risk of age-related morbidities and premature mortality. However, possible biological mechanisms underlying these associations remain understudied. One hypothesized mechanism is a slower rate of cellular aging, which in turn delays age-related declines in health.
methodsWe used data from two large cohort studies to test the hypothesis that higher optimism is associated with longer leukocyte telomere length. With cross-sectional data from the Health and Retirement Study (HRS; n = 6417; mean age = 70 years) and the Women's Health Initiative (WHI; N = 3582; mean age = 63 years), we used linear regression models to examine the association of optimism with relative telomere length (assessed in leukocytes from saliva [HRS] or plasma [WHI]). Models adjusted for sociodemographics, depression, health status, and health behaviors.
resultsConsidering both optimism and telomere length as continuous variables, we found consistently null associations in both cohorts, regardless of which covariates were included in the models. In models adjusting for demographics, depression, comorbidities, and health behaviors, optimism was not associated with mean relative telomere length (HRS: β = -0.002, 95% confidence interval = -0.014 to 0.011; WHI: β = -0.004, 95% confidence interval = -0.017 to 0.009).
conclusionsFindings do not support mean telomere length as a mechanism that explains observed relations of optimism with reduced risk of chronic disease in older adults. Future research is needed to evaluate other potential biological markers and pathways.
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