Association of Estrogen Use with Telomere Length: An NHANES Investigation

A telomere is a repetitive DNA sequence located at the end of human chromosomes, and its length shortens with age.Research has demonstrated that estrogen is associated with the aging of various types of cells, including brain, muscle, and bone cells.This study explored the cross-sectional association between estrogen usage and telomere length, utilizing data from the US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 1999-2002.The final number of participants included in this study was 491.This study's bivariate Rao-Scott 2 test revealed a significant association between telomere length and gender (p < 0.01).Females have longer telomeres than males, indicated by a rate ratio of 1.72.A positive relationship between estrogen usage and telomere length was observed among female participants, yielding a rate ratio of 1.44.The mosaic diagram and Pearson residuals confirmed the statistical significance of this difference (p < 0.001).This suggests that estrogen administration may preserve telomeres and contribute to healthy aging.In conjunction with the findings from the literature, this study supports the need for further investigations into the effects of estrogen administration on telomere length.