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Pregnancy is a life experience I’d rather avoid. That doesn’t mean I’m selfish

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I recently conducted a very scientific study in the pub with some straight male friends. “Have you ever wanted to experience pregnancy?” I asked. The answer was an emphatic “absolutely not”. In the interests of methodological rigorousness, I rephrased my question. “Do you ever feel sad you aren’t able to experience what it’s like to grow a human inside you?” Again, 100% of respondents answered with some variation of, “Hell, no.”

My investigations were prompted by a scientific study published in the journal Human Reproduction. The official title of the study is Parity Associated With Telomere Length Among US Reproductive-Age Women, but a more accurate title would be Yet More Evidence That Pregnancy Is Torture. Not only does pregnancy mess with your hormones, it appears to mess up your DNA; giving birth may add the equivalent of 11 years to a woman’s biological age.

This doesn’t necessarily mean having kids will send you to an early grave, just that giving birth seems to cause your cells to age. The research looked at blood samples from almost 2,000 US women aged from 20-44 and found that those who had given birth had telomeres that were 4.2% shorter than those who hadn’t. Telomeres are like protective caps that cover the ends of our chromosomes; over time they get worn down, and shorter telomeres have been linked to certain physical signs of ageing such as grey hair, along with age-associated health problems, including heart failure.



Source :- theguardian
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