Being exposed to diseases during childhood does not lead to a greater risk of death during adulthood, a study conducted by researchers from Scotland and Finland has found. The study was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America magazine.
"Our analyses are significant because they show that early-life disease exposure was not linked to increased risk of death in later life," said lead researcher Adam Hayward, as per Science Daily. Hayward is an Impact Research Fellow at the University of Stirling in Scotland.
Childhood diseases don't affect life expectancy, study finds https://t.co/ORpOlNq5E0 pic.twitter.com/NelEhk4iOm
— Times of Malta (@TheTimesofMalta) July 26, 2016
Childhood Disease Exposure Not Linked To Death From Three Diseases
"We also didn't find a link to cardiovascular diseases, strokes or cancer deaths," said Professor Virpi Lummaa from University of Turku in Finland, as per Times of Malta. Researchers from the two universities looked into the records of 18th and 19th century populations in Finland who had different mortality and fertility levels.
Science Daily reported that the researchers examined data from 7,283 individuals born before effective medicine and contraception had been introduced. The men and women were scored on the likelihood of their exposure to disease in childhood that were based on deaths in childhood caused by infections.
Childhood Exposure To Infection And Later Life
"Overall, we found no support for the idea that exposure to infections in early life can have long-lasting consequences for later-life survival and reproduction," Hayward said, as per a report from Herald Scotland. Hayward added that it is more likely that improved conditions in adulthood, such as healthcare and diet, is causing the recent increase in the lifespan of adults.
The report said that the Scottish scientist believe that their study's findings have shown that previous research suggesting childhood diseases caused long-lasting inflammation. The previous studies connected this to greater risk of adult cardiovascular disease and early death.
