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Surveying Low-Cost Methods to Measure Lifespan and Healthspan in Caenorhabditis elegans

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Does reproduction decrease longevity in human beings?

Eric Le Bourg¹

¹Centre de Recherche sur la Cognition Animale, UMR CNRS 5169, Université Paul-Sabatier, 118 route de Narbonne, F-31062 Toulouse Cedex 9, France. lebourg@cict.fr

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Summary

Reproduction may impact lifespan. While natural fertility populations show no longevity decrease with more children, modern populations may see increased mortality after five children, suggesting a potential cost of reproduction.

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Area of Science:

Evolutionary biology
Demography
Human reproduction

Background:

The disposable soma theory posits a trade-off between reproduction and longevity.
This theory suggests that increased reproductive effort could lead to decreased lifespan.

Purpose of the Study:

To review evidence on the relationship between the number of children and longevity.
To examine this relationship in populations with natural fertility versus modern fertility conditions.

Main Methods:

Literature review of studies on populations with natural and modern fertility.
Analysis of existing data correlating parity (number of children) with mortality and longevity.

Main Results:

In natural fertility populations, higher numbers of children were not associated with decreased longevity.
In modern populations, mortality showed a slight increase for women with more than approximately five children.

Conclusions:

The cost of reproduction, in terms of longevity, may differ significantly between natural and modern fertility settings.
Further research on complete cohort data is needed to confirm if longevity, not just mortality, is affected in modern populations.