Exposure to tobacco smoke during pregnancy and infancy can alter a baby's epigenetic age, that is, accelerate biological aging, according to a new study.
Scientists have analyzed the link between exposure to tobacco smoke and the "epigenetic clock" in more than a thousand children from six different countries
In a study published in the journal Environment International, scientists measured the effects of tobacco smoke and other environmental factors on 83 babies in womb and 103 babies. They also analyzed the epigenetic age of 1,173 children aged 6 to 11 from the Human Early Life Exposome (HELIX) project.
The results of the analysis showed that exposure to tobacco smoke on the mother during pregnancy accelerates the epigenetic aging of the child. The biological aging of children already born is also accelerating due to exposure to tobacco smoke and increased indoor black carbon levels. The latter is an air pollutant as a result of incomplete combustion of fuel.
The epigenetic clock is a collection of epigenetic DNA tags that allows you to determine the biological age of a tissue, cell or organ.
Scientists also identified two factors that were associated with the actual slowing down of biological aging: exposure to the organic pesticide DMDTP and a persistent organic pollutant (polychlorinated biphenyl-138).
"Further research is needed to explain these results, but the former may be associated with higher intake of fruits and vegetables, while the latter can be explained by its correlation with body mass index," the scientists write.