Your Body Ages Faster Around These People

A new study suggests that difficult people in your life may be doing more than ruining your day. They might actually speed biological aging. Researchers studying more than 2,000 adults found that people who regularly interact with what they call "hasslers"— individuals who create stress or conflict— showed measurable signs of faster aging at the cellular level. The test analyzed saliva samples and measured genetic markers that reveal how. They found that every additional stressful relationship increased the pace of biological aging by about 1.5%. Now that may sound small, but researchers say those effects can accumulate over time and contribute to earlier chronic disease. Women and people already dealing with health problems were more likely to report these stressful relationships, reinforcing a broader scientific finding that strong supportive relationships protect health while chronic social stress can slowly undermine it.