High Phobic Anxiety Is Related to Lower Leukocyte Telomere Length in Women

Chronic psychological distress has been linked to shorter telomeres, an indication of accelerated aging. Yet, little is known about relations of anxiety to telomeres. We examined whether a typically chronic form of anxiety – phobic anxiety – is related to telomere length., without smoking history, or born to fathers aged ≥40 years.In this large, cross-sectional study high phobic anxiety was associated with shorter telomeres. These results point toward prospective investigations relating anxiety to telomere length change