“These findings may have implications for understanding how, at the cellular level, environmental stress may promote earlier onset of age-related diseases,” wrote the researchers, who published their findings in Gene.

Italy’s Campania region—between Acerra, Nola, and Marigliano—has been dubbed the “triangle of death” because of reports of an unusually high number of deaths from cancer (as well as birth defects). Illegal hazardous waste dumping in the region is thought to contribute to these deaths. There are an estimated 1,230 illegal hazardous waste dumps in the area.

The research may be used to implicate the local illegal dumping as a health hazard and steer enforcement of landfill regulations in the region.

According to an article in New Scientist, industrial waste products called dioxins may be to blame for the effect on telomeres. Dioxins are dangerous chemicals found widely in the environment that are linked to interfering with hormones, reproductive problems, and chronic diseases. Short telomeres have been linked to several age-related diseases including cardiovascular disease, Alzheimer’s disease, and some cancers.

According to the World Health Organization, more than 90 percent of the exposure to dioxins in humans is from foods such as meat, dairy, fish, and shellfish. For this reason, governments have programs in place to monitor the food supply for dioxins.

Reference: Felice BD, et al. Telomere shortening in women resident close to waste landfill sites. Gene. 2012 March 20 [Epub ahead of print]. doi:

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.gene.2012.03.040