Sociodemographic Factors and Residential Location Influence Allostatic Load and Frailty in Poland
Year: 2017
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: In 2005, The World Health Organization listed work-related stress as a leading challenge to health for the 21st century.Mammals maintain homeostasis via an evolved neurophysiological response to life's stressors -allostasis.Over time, chronic exposures and responses to stressors lead to physiological dysregulation.Compounded over a lifespan, these produce a somatic burden, an allostatic load.Compensatory allostatic responses and related somatic alterations across multiple systems cannot be measured directly.However, individual allostatic load may be assessed by combining arrays of neurophysiological biomarkers.To better understand how personal factors may contribute to physiological dysregulation, we examined associations of age, sex, area of residence, and frailty with a 10-biomarker estimate of allostatic load in 211 residents of Poland (ages 55-91 years) residing in either Nekla, a small village, or Poznan, an urban metropolis.We hypothesized men, older participants, residents of Poznan, and those showing higher frailty would all exhibit greater allostatic load.Overall, men and women did not differ significantly in their allostatic load (p=0.146).Nor was allostatic load higher among residents of Nekla (p=0.063).However, men from Nekla did show higher allostatic load than those from Poznan (p=0.039),women did not (p=0.510).Allostatic load also was not associated significantly with either age or frailty.In this sample, lifestyle appears to influence stress-related physiological dysfunction only in men.
Author: Daryin Marissa Hummel
Institution: The Ohio State University
Language: English
Subfield: Behavioral Neuroscience
Field: Neuroscience
Domain: Life Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W2889588893