If your teenage son or daughter is blighted by acne, they can take heart. For while they may feel greasy and unattractive at the moment, by middle age they will be the envy of their peers. British research shows that acne sufferers’ cells have built-in protection against ageing that is likely to keep them looking younger than their years. So while their former classmates bemoan the appearance of crow’s feet and other wrinkles and crinkles, their skin is more likely to maintain a youthful lustre. The suggestion comes from King’s College London researchers who studied tiny structures called telomeres. These are caps on the ends of chromosomes that protect the DNA in them from damage, much like caps on shoelaces prevent fraying. Thought of as tiny biological clocks, telomeres get shorter as we age and eventually become so short that cells die. Previous studies have found men and women with long telomeres tend to be biologically younger than those of the same age but with shorter ones. All in all, telomeres are considered so important that the scientists who discovered them seven years ago were awarded a Nobel Prize for medicine. The King’s College study measured the telomeres in the white blood cells of more than 1,200 twins, a quarter of whom had suffered from acne. Telomeres were significantly longer in those who had a spotty adolescence, even when factors such as age were taken into account. A second experiment looking at skin samples showed that a cluster of genes involved in cell death was less active in acne sufferers. Dermatologists have long noted that the skin of acne patients seems to age more slowly, with wrinkles and thinning appearing much later. It was thought excessive oil production contributed to their Peter Pan looks, but the rest of the biology was unknown. Lead researcher Dr Simone Ribero said, “Our findings suggest that the cause could be linked to the length of telomeres which appears to be different in acne sufferers and means their cells may be protected against ageing.” Co-author Dr Veronique Bataille added, “Longer telomeres are likely to be one factor explaining the protection against premature skin ageing in individuals who previously suffered from acne.” Previous research from the same university has suggested adults with lots of moles may also look younger for longer. The latest study is reported in the Journal of Investigative Dermatology. Dr Bataille said that while teenage acne sufferers do not listen to her when she tells them they are going to look “fantastic in their 40s and 50s”, women in their 20s tend to be more interested. Longer telomeres also tend to signal stronger bones and a less frail old age, meaning dealing with spots may have more than one silver lining. Dr Bataille said, “It’s nice to know that there’s a positive aspect to having acne.” She added that learning more about the genetic process could lead to new acne drugs, as well as anti-ageing treatments. All of the study participants were women but the finding is also likely to apply to men who suffered from acne as teenagers.