Jewish women and ageing

[Clytemnestra2]

I know there’s no such thing as a typical Jewish women, and that one Jewish woman can obviously look very different to another but.... do Jewish women (on the whole) often look a lot younger than their actual age? I’m probably talking about those with East European Ashkenazi heritage.

For example Nigella Lawson is 60, Winona Ryder is 48 and Natalie Portman is 38. In my eyes all of them look significantly younger than most women their age. Even once you’ve adjusted for the fact they’re celebrities and obviously have to make more effort with their appearance that the average non-famous woman.

And from my own personal perspective, I’m from this background and have consistently been mistaken for 10 years younger than my real age throughout my life. Not meant in a boastful way at all - eg I spent my 20s getting ID’d at pubs & clubs and then my 30s not being taken seriously at work as everyone assumed I was only just out of uni. Plus I definitely don’t have the good looks of Natalie, Winona etc!

73 and 36! Although I'm not sure of their exact heritage to be fair.

And I know they're not women

I think they Jewish women are often very well groomed and take enormous care over appearance and aren’t adverse to a bit of work! Overall the Jewish women I know, and there are many tend to look very good and put together all through their lives which helps. Certainly, my parents friends in their early to mid 70’s still generally look fantastic. It’s a relatively affluent community too so that will play a part in many of the women looking good, they’ve got some money and it’s a priority: I wish I could say the same for Jewish men. On the whole, not so great.

I'd wear a burkini or similar if I could get one!

I think the data suggests that some Ashkenzai families (not all though) pass down genes for longer telomeres and so if they get to about 70-80 without any ageing related diseases like high blood pressure / diabetes etc then they are more likely to live to their 100s. Generally looking younger than your age is a sign of this this but, and this is a big one, it’s looking younger at 60-70 that counts not younger ages.

From a purely looks perspective people with dark skin and dark hair do tend to look younger. This isn’t confined to one particular race. I am Indian and I am almost 40 but look 10 years younger because I am darker skinned and my BMI is normal. My black and South Asian friends all look like they are still teenagers too.

Not drinking, not smoking, staying out of sun. Generally typically jewish features make the face look older.
Asian, african and black people now they really do look younger.

This thread made me smile.
I am mid 40s ashkenazi and look much younger -mainly due to chubby cheeks so not nec a total blessing.
I always wear sunscreen, don't smoke or drink at all except a bit of kiddush wine on friday night -making myself laugh.
Most of my friends are same age and ashkenazi none are drinkers or smokers. Some look great some look their age, some look haggard.
I tend to think these things are down to genes, lifestyle and diet. But would love to think I have some secret elixir of youth.

My Nan was from a Jewish background (not sure if Ashkenazi or Sephardi) with black hair, hazel eyes & pale skin, she didn't start to go grey until her 80s (she didn't agree with coloured hair so I know her hair was natural), and she had hardly any lines until her 90s... but then she avoided the sun, never drank alcohol or smoked, and was always quite plump which smooths out lines.

My mum also looks young but inherited her looks from my non Jewish Grandad.

I think a lot of the Holocaust survivors you can read about seem to live into their 90s which could be their genes. Sadly I now keep reading obituaries for many of them living in eg Israel, France & the US that have died of covid.

@Flyinggeese we are indeed all one race - you might want to do some reading.
It's been clearly demonstrated that there is no genetic basis for different races. It's a social construct - primarily used to propagate bigotry
www.nationalgeographic.co.uk/history/2019/02/race-and-ethnicity-explained

@Veterinari why is it then that Ashkenazi jews for example suffer from certain genetic health disorders that other races don't have?

And Why do some races get for example Sickle Cell Anaemia?

None of those disease issues are exclusive to those groups, they may occur more commonly in some groups - for example sickle cell anaemia occurs more commonly in people of African heritage because it also protects against malaria and this 'benefit' means the sickle cell gene is more highly conserved in this population.
www.cdc.gov/malaria/about/biology/index.html

Disease predispositions are often driven by environmental influences on our genes. They can also be driven by other factors eg sex or age or hormones

They aren't driven by inherent genetic racial differences

@Terralee
There's certainly no racial basis for disease predisposition that I'm aware of and current biology does not support racial groupings so you may want to rethink your rather casually offensive terminology - or provide some evidence to back up your assertions

Rachel Weisz is another one!
I think they typically have amazing bone structure, strong skin, and yes- don’t drink!
Just thought I’d mention my girl crush.

Don't most celebrities look younger because they can afford dieticians, personal trainers, professional make-up, stylists, botox, plastic surgery, etc.? I do think that quite often black and Chinese women look much younger than their age though.

Celtic skin is often thin and dry and ages more quickly. It is also more prone to sun damage. Mediterranean skin is stronger. People with good strong skin usually have thick hair and, again, this helps with the perception of ageing well.

I’ve never looked at an Orthodox Jewish woman wearing her wig and thick tights and cardigan and ever thought she looked younger... or even happy for that matter. Other than that I wouldn’t know who was Jewish or not. The women mentioned on this thread are all beautiful as well as young looking which has invariably played a part in their celebrity and the fact we even know their name ( so not an average sample from that community). So the answer is “
I don’t know”

Celtic skin is beautiful. It is delicate and fair so the owners tend not to want to sunbathe. It is not oily so spots, acne and so on are not an issue. Because of its delicacy and the fact that it had usually not been exposed a lot to the sun, it actually ages really well! I have never seen someone with leathery Celtic skin!

@Vetenari I suggest you look on Google where you can find many Jewish associations & societies for the screening of various genetic diseases which research has apparently shown children of two Ashkenazi Jews are at risk of such as Tay-Sachs disease.
If I'm being offensive then so are they.

I'm only a lay person not a scientist and I don't know how to link, I just know what I came across when I was researching my ancestry.

Roseanne Barr has had shit loads done !!

@Terralee

As per my post below race is a social not a biological construct and there are many different reasons why different groups may be more or less predisposed to different diseases.

A couple of hundred years ago the Royal families of Europe were predisposed to haemophilia. That doesn't make those people a separate race.

Tay Sachs disease is not exclusive to Ashkanezi Jewish people but does occur at a fairly high prevalence. It's potentially confers protection from tuberculosis so is more likely to be passed on in populations at risk from TB. However it also occurs fairly often in other populations including Caucasian people.
https://journals.lww.com/greenjournal/Abstract/2018/05001/TaySachsAnnAshkenaziJewishhDiseaseorrNot.205.aspxx
_
Because it's a recessive gene it's potentially more likely to occur clinically in Ashkenazi Jewish people because of the cultural norm to marry within the community increasing the likelihood that two recessive carriers reproduce - this is a social driver of disease not a genetic one, and is similar to the Royal family/haemophilia example._

Having Tay-Sachs does not make you a different race to other humans any more than haemophilia makes people a different race and I can't find a single google link that suggest this is so. So no the science is not offensive and is pretty straightforward.

If you prefer to cling to prejudice that is absolutely your choice.

Celtic skin is prone to rosacea and ages badly.

Celtic skin is prone to rosacea and ages badly.

That's definitely true in my case

Apparently
women who look young for their age have large lips, avoid sun-exposure and possess genetic factors that protect against the development of gray hair and skin wrinkles.
journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0008021

What about the aboriginee people whos dna is different to every other human on earth? They also have very young skin for a long time and im sure they are genetically more prone to different ailments than someone from a different place.

I'm Jewish...mother's side only. Forty next year.. I don't think I look it. Don't think it's my heritage though.
I have a plump face which helps and I don't smoke or drink.

Interestingly the skin on my face is quite thick and oily which helps.