A recent Finnish study has revealed that the number of children and a mother's age at pregnancy affect a woman's health and lifespan. The study, conducted by a research team from several institutions including the Finnish Institute for Molecular Medicine, the Institute for Life Sciences in Helsinki, and the University of Helsinki, involved nearly 15,000 women and spanned several decades. Participants completed questionnaires in 1975, and researchers then monitored their health, number of births, and family size to the present day. The results showed that women who had two to three children and became pregnant between the ages of 24 and 38 lived the longest and were in the best health. Conversely, women who had four or more children had a shorter lifespan and aged biologically faster. The study also found that women who had never given birth also aged more quickly, which researchers attributed to other health or lifestyle factors not covered in the study. To determine the participants' biological age, the researchers analyzed their blood and DNA changes. These findings confirm previous research suggesting that multiple births accelerate a woman's biological aging. However, as the researchers note, these results do not prove a causal link between the number of births and mortality, and should not be used as a general guideline for making family planning decisions.
