RENTING CAN AGE YOU FASTER THAN SMOKING OR OBESITY

The stresses of renting a home can age people faster than if they are obese, smoked or were unemployed, a new study indicates.

Struggling to pay rent, dealing with the hassles of moving and even the mere stigma of renting can cause tenants to age two and a half weeks faster for every year renting, according to The British Medical Journal’s Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health.

Housing is an important factor in health, the researchers argue, and can have a greater impact on aging compared to other “social determinants” such as unemployment.

Research has shown that physical conditions of housing, like overcrowding or inadequate heating, have an impact on health, but other factors like affordability may, too.

Pollution, grime and other environmental problems can also add to the gray hairs.

More favorable housing policies, however, could turn back the hands of time and reverse the effects of biological aging.

The study covered a sample of 40,000 households in the U.K. and started in 1991.

Though housing in the U.K. differs from the U.S., Giselle Routhier, co-director of the Health x Housing Lab at NYU Grossman School of Medicine, told the news site HealthDay that the findings come as no surprise.

“If you don’t have a home where you feel safe and secure, how much more challenging is it to manage your daily life, let alone any medical conditions?” she told the outlet.

“These findings are likely to be relevant to housing and health outside of Britain,” said the researchers.