Perceived racism in relation to telomere length among African American women in the Black Women's Health Study

Telomere length is considered a biomarker of human aging and premature morbidity and mortality which has been associated with chronic stress. We assessed the relation between perceived racism and telomere length in the Black Women's Health Study, a follow-up study of U.S. black women begun in 1995. Participants were asked about frequency of “everyday racism” (e.g., “people act as if they think you are not intelligent”) and “institutional racism”...