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Researchers at Yale School of Medicine (YSM) report that pregnancy can accelerate biological aging in women, according to a recent study.
To reach this conclusion, Assistant Professor Kieran O’Donnell and his team at the Yale Children’s Study Center (YCSC) analyzed a unique cohort of pregnant women who provided epigenetic data during their pregnancies. Using epigenetic clocks — biomarkers of aging based on DNA methylation patterns — scientists calculated biological age changes over time.
The study found that within 20 weeks of pregnancy, a woman’s biological (epigenetic) age increased by roughly two years, indicating that pregnancy temporarily accelerates aging.
However, when the researchers measured biological age three months postpartum, they observed a surprising reversal. “We saw a significant drop in biological age — up to eight years for some participants. The postpartum period shows a clear and pronounced recovery,” O’Donnell explained.
The study also suggested that breastfeeding contributes to an even greater reduction in maternal biological age three months after delivery compared with levels during pregnancy.
O’Donnell emphasized that these findings open new avenues for aging research. “We do not yet know whether postpartum recovery affects short-term or long-term maternal health, or whether these effects accumulate across multiple pregnancies. It is also unclear if postpartum biological age reduction simply restores the system to pre-pregnancy levels, or, intriguingly, if pregnancy itself may have rejuvenating effects,” he noted.
