Divorce can add years to your visible age

Washington, February 4: Marital split can make you look a lot older than your actual age, claims a new study, which warned women on-the-verge-of-old-age against divorce.

Other stressful environmental factors, abnormal weight loss and use of antidepressants can also wreak havoc on your face as they favor wrinkles and prop up the other signs of ageing.

"A person's heritage may initially dictate how they age -- but if you introduce certain factors into your life, you will certainly age faster. Likewise, if you avoid those factors you can slow down the hands of time," said lead author Bahaman Guyuron, the chief of plastic surgery at University Hospitals Case Medical Center.

Guyuron and colleagues studied 149 sets of identical twins since they have similar genetic make-up. They were questioned about their personal lives, the time they spent in the sun, smoking habits, and whether they consumed alcohol and certain medications.

Researchers found that the divorcees appeared nearly two years older than their siblings who were married, single or even widowed. Anti-depressant use and weight were also associated with a significantly older appearance.

10 years of smoking apparently add two years to your visible age.

Amongst the subjects under 40, the heavier twin appeared to be older, while in sets of twins above 40 years of age, the heavier twin seemed younger. "The presence of stress could be one of the common denominators in those twins who appeared older," said Guyuron.

"This research is important for two reasons. First, we have discovered a number of new factors that contribute to aging and second, our findings put science behind the idea that volume replacement rejuvenates the face," Guyuron said.

Alos, it helps “to see if we can help the public adjust what they do -- their social behavior and lifestyle -- to keep themselves younger,” he said. “They have an opportunity to make some alteration to their behavior before it's too late."

The findings have been published in the ‘Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery’ journal.