Title | History of socioeconomic disadvantage and allostatic load in later life. |
Publication Type | Journal Article |
Authors | Gruenewald, Tara L., Arun S. Karlamangla, Perry Hu, Sharon Stein-Merkin, Carolyn Crandall, Brandon Koretz, and Teresa E. Seeman |
PubMed ID | 22115943 (link is external) |
PubMed Central ID | PMC3264490 |
Grant List | K01 AG028582-04 / AG / NIA NIH HHS / United States K01-AG028582 / AG / NIA NIH HHS / United States P01 AG020166 / AG / NIA NIH HHS / United States P01-AG020166 / AG / NIA NIH HHS / United States R01-AG032271 / AG / NIA NIH HHS / United States R01-AG033067 / AG / NIA NIH HHS / United States UL1 RR033176 / RR / NCRR NIH HHS / United States UL1 TR000124 / TR / NCATS NIH HHS / United States |
History of socioeconomic disadvantage and allostatic load in later life.
There is a growing interest in understanding how the experience of socioeconomic status (SES) adversity across the life course may accumulate to negatively affect the functioning of biological regulatory systems important to functioning and health in later adulthood. The goal of the present analyses was to examine whether greater life course SES adversity experience would be associated with higher scores on a multi-system allostatic load (AL) index of physiological function in adulthood. Data for these analyses are from 1008 participants (92.2% White) from the Biomarker Substudy of the Study of Midlife in the US (MIDUS). Multiple indicators of SES adversity in childhood (parent educational attainment, welfare status, financial situation) and two points in adulthood (educational attainment, household income, difficulty paying bills, availability of money to meet basic needs, current financial situation) were used to construct SES adversity measures for each life course phase. An AL score was constructed using information on 24 biomarkers from 7 different physiological systems (sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems, hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, cardiovascular, lipid metabolism, glucose metabolism, inflammatory immune activity). Analyses indicate higher AL as a function of greater SES adversity at each phase of, and cumulatively across, the life course. Associations were only moderately attenuated when accounting for a wide array of health status, behavioral and psychosocial factors. Findings suggest that SES adversity experience may cumulate across the life course to have a negative impact on multiple biological systems in adulthood. An important aim of future research is the replication of current findings in this predominantly White sample in more ethnically diverse populations.
Title | History of socioeconomic disadvantage and allostatic load in later life. |
---|---|
Publication Title | Soc Sci Med |
Publication Type | Journal Article |
Published Year | 2012 |
Authors | T.L. Gruenewald; A.S. Karlamangla; P. Hu; S. Stein-Merkin; C. Crandall; B. Koretz; T.E. Seeman |
ISSN Number | 1873-5347 |
PubMed ID | 22115943 (link is external) |
PubMed Central ID | PMC3264490 |
Grant List | K01 AG028582-04 AG NIA NIH HHS United States K01-AG028582 AG NIA NIH HHS United States P01 AG020166 AG NIA NIH HHS United States P01-AG020166 AG NIA NIH HHS United States R01-AG032271 AG NIA NIH HHS United States R01-AG033067 AG NIA NIH HHS United States UL1 RR033176 RR NCRR NIH HHS United States UL1 TR000124 TR NCATS NIH HHS United States |
JOIN THE CONVERSATION
For breaking news and to stay connected, follow us on social media. Sign up to get our E-News delivered straight to your inbox.