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Middle-aged mothers live longer

Author

Listed:
  • Thomas T. Perls

    (Department of Medicine)

  • Laura Alpert

    (Department of Medicine)

  • Ruth C. Fretts

    (Beth Israel-Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School)

Abstract

Comparing two groups of women born in 1896, we found that women who lived to at least age 100 were four times more likely to have had children while in their forties than women who survived only to age 73. The ability to have children in the fifth decade may be a marker for slow ageing and subsequent ability to achieve extreme longevity. We propose that the evolutionary pressure to extend lifespan is closely linked to prolonging the period of time during which women can bear children.

Suggested Citation

  • Thomas T. Perls & Laura Alpert & Ruth C. Fretts, 1997. "Middle-aged mothers live longer," Nature, Nature, vol. 389(6647), pages 133-133, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:nature:v:389:y:1997:i:6647:d:10.1038_38148
    DOI: 10.1038/38148
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Patrice Nicholas & Mary Smith, 2006. "Demographic challenges and health in Germany," Population Research and Policy Review, Springer;Southern Demographic Association (SDA), vol. 25(5), pages 479-487, December.
    2. Grundy, Emily & Kravdal, Øystein, 2010. "Fertility history and cause-specific mortality: A register-based analysis of complete cohorts of Norwegian women and men," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 70(11), pages 1847-1857, June.
    3. Spence, Naomi J. & Eberstein, Isaac W., 2009. "Age at first birth, parity, and post-reproductive mortality among white and black women in the US, 1982-2002," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 68(9), pages 1625-1632, May.
    4. Gabriele Doblhammer, 1999. "Reproductive history and mortality later in life: a comparative study of England & Wales and Austria," MPIDR Working Papers WP-1999-004, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany.
    5. Gabriele Doblhammer & James W. Vaupel, 1999. "Reproductive history and mortality later in life for Austrian women," MPIDR Working Papers WP-1999-012, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany.
    6. Grundy, Emily & Tomassini, Cecilia, 2005. "Fertility history and health in later life: a record linkage study in England and Wales," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 61(1), pages 217-228, July.
    7. Smith, Ken R. & Mineau, Geraldine P. & Garibotti, Gilda & Kerber, Richard, 2009. "Effects of childhood and middle-adulthood family conditions on later-life mortality: Evidence from the Utah Population Database, 1850-2002," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 68(9), pages 1649-1658, May.
    8. Heidi Hanson & Ken Smith & Zachary Zimmer, 2015. "Reproductive History and Later-Life Comorbidity Trajectories: A Medicare-Linked Cohort Study From the Utah Population Database," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 52(6), pages 2021-2049, December.
    9. Yi Zeng & James W. Vaupel, 2003. "Association of late childbearing with healthy longevity among the oldest-old in China," MPIDR Working Papers WP-2003-020, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany.

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