No link between infant illness and adult health
A biological study has found that exposure to infections in early life does not have longlasting consequences for laterlife survival and reproduction.
Academics at the University of Stirling found no support for the idea that childhood illnesses result in higher mortality risk during adulthood.
Evolutionary ecologists at the Scottish institution worked alongside colleagues from Turku, Finland, to exam- ine why life expectancy has risen so much over the last 150 years.
In 2014, the National Records of Scotland revealed men in Scotland could expect to live to 76, while women could expect to reach 80.
Yet a century before, Scots men had a life expectancy of just 50 and women 52. In 1871, male life expectancy in Glasgow declined to as low as 30 – a decade below the national average.
Previous research suggested diseases which used to be common in childhood, such as smallpox, measles and whooping cough, caused long-lasting inflammation, which then increased the risk of cardiovascular disease in adulthood and resulted in an early death.
Experts thought that since the introduction of vaccines and eradication of these diseases, children rarely get these illnesses anymore and do not experience long-lasting inflammation, and as a result, are living longer. However, if this was the case, we would expect infections in childhood to now be linked to early death from heart disease, stroke and cancer.
Lead researcher Adam Hayward said: “We found no support for the idea that exposure to infections in early life can have long-lasting consequences for later-life survival and reproduction.
“Instead, it appears more likely that improved conditions during adulthood, such as healthcare and diet, are responsible for recent increases in adult lifespan.”