Why do different races age so differently

[hypertilly]

This is something which has long intrigued and fascinated me.

Black people seem to age very slowly and white people seem to age very rapidly. What causes this?

Is it something within muscle density?

[YT2095]

I`m not entirely convinced your premise is correct???

[hypertilly]

I base my question purely on what I see.

If we take the very visible signs of wringles as signs of aging, there are stark differences (especially between black and white ) why is this?

[YT2095]

I`ve never noticed that at all, I work with several black fellas 2 are retired (65+) and they look just like their age to me, complete with grey hair

another lad in his mid 30`s (a Biology teacher), looks like a 30 something year old also.

 

as for Wrinkles my Guess would be that since Wrinkles come from lower collagen levels sub dermal, that perhaps the extra melanin in a black persons skin protects them somewhat from the UV rays caused by the sun.

UV being known to affect these levels.

[lboogy]

also black people don't worship the sun like many white people do, avoiding skin cancer and damaged skin

[workngwmn]

As a black woman (50 yrs.) I agree that there is a stark contrast between the aging process of blacks and whites. I am sure if asked, most dermatologists will concur that there is an aging difference of 10 years between whites and blacks. Most blacks do not get face lifts, etc. Furthermore, unless a black person has really lived a hard life (ie boozing, drugs, sun, smoking, etc.) they will age slower. My mom was 83 yrs. when she passed and had very little gray in her hair and people questioned her age since she looked at least 10 years younger. The melanin in the skin is built-in sun screen for us.

[Dak]

it could also be as simple as wrinkles showing up more on white skin; the folds cause shadows, which highlight them against white skin, but not against black.

[theCPE]

What about asians?

 

Isn't Jackie Chan supposedly about 70 years old:)

[mamakosj]

correct me if i'm wrong, but people of the aisian persuasion tend to lok slightly younger than they really are. i arrived at this assumption because there are several chinese/japanese students in my further maths class who look about the same age or a bit younger than me, yet are at least one year older than me.

[CDarwin]

correct me if i'm wrong, but people of the aisian persuasion tend to lok slightly younger than they really are. i arrived at this assumption because there are several chinese/japanese students in my further maths class who look about the same age or a bit younger than me, yet are at least one year older than me.

 

Haha, there's an Asian girl I know who's sixteen and looks like she's twelve. She still has her baby teeth even. Of course her breasts are bigger than her head, so that kind of tips you off.

 

*clears throat* Anyway, Asians as a group are supposed to be more neotenic, which means they retain more juvenile features than peoples of other geographic persuasions. Of course as a true aspiring biological anthropologist I disdain the entire concept of race, but if the premise is correct than it does seem that it is likely the melanin in the skin that slows the appearance of wrinkles. I would be interested to see anything on how Australian Aborigines age when live a life comparable to a middle class African-American.

[abskebabs]

I think dietary considerations may have a lot to do with ageing differences between different populations and communities. For an example with a slightly different health issue; the incidence of Alzheimer's disease among elderly Asian(in the Uk this refers usually to south Asian not East Asian) people is pretty low. This has been attributed to the turmeric that is a regular intake in their diets(including mine, and my family's incidentally:-) ).

[ecoli]

People had better start citing sources other than anecdotal in this thread.

[Genecks]

Personal testimony is a type of evidence. However, it might not be the most supportable.

[ecoli]

Personal testimony is a type of evidence. However, it might not be the most supportable.

 

that's what 'anecdotal' means.

[mamakosj]

are ageing differences between races due to some form of evolutionary effects? as in did they provide advantages or disadvantages in certain types of lifestyles of situations?