The last thing you want to happen to your cells’ telomeres is shortening!
If you’re under chronic stress and anxiety, your telomeres are probably getting clipped.
A study (Effros, 2008) and published in Brain, Behavior and Immunity has discovered the mechanism by which stress ages the body and lowers its resistance to severe illness.
It is normal for the body to release stress hormones when in stressful situations, but when this condition persists and the stress hormones such as cortisol are present in the bloodstream for a prolonged period of time, they can lead to shorter telomere length and damage the ability of the body’s cells to divide.
Stress Shortens Telomere Length
The cell’s ability to divide is key to preserving young and active cells in the immune system.
This ability is governed by the length of telomeres, which are located at the tips of chromosomes.
Telomeres naturally shorten every time a cell divides.
Cell division ceases when telomeres become too short or nub-like.
When a person is under stress, cortisol is produced and released into the bloodstream.
The study, authored by Professor Rita Effros of the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, shows that cortisol hinders an immune-system cell’s ability to use telomerase (an enzyme) to preserve telomere length.
People under chronic stress have shorter telomeres and therefore less active immune systems.
Can you stop your telomeres from shortening due to emotional stressors?
“Telomeres shorten as we age — and yes, stress and anxiety can hasten this shortening,” says Rupali Chadha, MD, former chief of medical staff at Metropolitan State Hospital in Norwalk, CA.
“And even if one cannot escape a stressful situation, oftentimes it is possible to reframe how we view our role in it.
“Easier said and not often always possible. But it might mean the difference to your mental state and telomeres.”
The stress and anxiety of an hour of driving to and from work each day, emotional tensions at home or work, illness of a loved one, or any similar situation is enough to cause elevated cortisol levels.
To combat stress, you may want to commit to visiting a gym straight after work instead of “unwinding” at a bar. A hard workout helps lower cortisol levels.
Another tactic is to choose your battles wisely. Is it really worth it to get all worked up because your tween daughter wants to put purple streaks in her hair?
In addition to general psychiatry, 
