Children born to women who experienced higher levels of racial discrimination and bias throughout their lives had a younger biological age than their calendar age, researchers at the University of Colorado Boulder and Anschutz Medical Campus found. “Biological age” is a measure of cell and tissue health.
While additional research is required to understand the long-term implications of slower biological aging, these findings could indicate delayed or disrupted development.
“It’s troubling that negative social experiences can get under the skin,” said researcher Zachery Laubach of the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at CU Boulder. “These children don’t have control over what their mothers may have experienced, but they can still be affected.
During early development, there are lots of biological systems that are undergoing rapid changes. Any deviation in the process may put development out of sync and cause long-term problems.”
