Age differences in Allostatic Load among adults in the United States by rural-urban residence

TY - JOUR

T1 - Age differences in Allostatic Load among adults in the United States by rural-urban residence

AU - Santos-Lozada, Alexis R.

AU - Howard, Jeffrey T.

AU - Monnat, Shannon

AU - Sliwinski, Martin J.

AU - Jensen, Leif

N1 - Funding Information: Funding for this research came from the Social Science Research Institute (SSRI) and the Population Research Institute ( P2CHD041025 ) at the Pennsylvania State University and a National Institute on Aging ( NIA ) Diversity Supplement ( R24AG054159-03S1 ). This research was also supported by the NIA-funded Interdisciplinary Network on Rural Population Health and Aging ( R24AG054159 ), the NIA-funded Network on Life Course Health Dynamics and Disparities ( 2R24AG045061 ), the NIA-funded Syracuse University Center for Aging and Policy Studies ( P30AG66583 ), and the USDA Agricultural Experiment Station Multistate Research Project : W4001 , Social, Economic and Environmental Causes and Consequences of Demographic Change in Rural America , and the Syracuse University Lerner Center for Public Health Promotion . Funding Information: Rural-urban disparities in health and premature mortality are well documented (Cosby et al., 2008, 2019; Elo et al., 2019; James et al., 2022; Monnat, 2020; Sparks, 2012). Yet, rural-urban disparities in stress and physiological dysregulation, which we measure as AL, are vastly unaddressed. This study provides the first analysis of rural-urban disparities in AL by age group in the US. The key finding is that there is a significant rural disadvantage in AL levels across all but the oldest age group. More research is needed to examine trends in physiological health, particularly identifying the role of cumulative “wear and tear” in shaping rural-urban disparities in chronic diseases and premature mortality. Importantly, rural-urban disparities in AL may reflect broader issues, such as economic inequality, unequal access to care, and other social and structural determinants of health. As such, rural-urban identifiers should be made more widely available in national public health datasets to facilitate better understanding the factors shaping AL disparities and to inform policy interventions. Policy interventions, such as increased funding for rural health care, promoting preventive care, reducing environmental pollutants (Thomson, 2019), and creating the social and environmental conditions necessary to promote good physiological health could reduce rural-urban disparities in AL.The authors received support from the Interdisciplinary Network for Rural Population Health and Aging (NIA, R24AG065159) and the Population Research Institute (NICHD, P2CHD041025).Funding for this research came from the Social Science Research Institute (SSRI) and the Population Research Institute (P2CHD041025) at the Pennsylvania State University and a National Institute on Aging (NIA) Diversity Supplement (R24AG054159-03S1). This research was also supported by the NIA-funded Interdisciplinary Network on Rural Population Health and Aging (R24AG054159), the NIA-funded Network on Life Course Health Dynamics and Disparities (2R24AG045061), the NIA-funded Syracuse University Center for Aging and Policy Studies (P30AG66583), and the USDA Agricultural Experiment Station Multistate Research Project: W4001, Social, Economic and Environmental Causes and Consequences of Demographic Change in Rural America, and the Syracuse University Lerner Center for Public Health Promotion.

PY - 2023/9

Y1 - 2023/9

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85163736997&partnerID=8YFLogxK

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85163736997&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1016/j.ssmph.2023.101442

DO - 10.1016/j.ssmph.2023.101442

M3 - Comment/Debate/Erratum

AN - SCOPUS:85163736997

SN - 2352-8273

VL - 23

JO - SSM - Population Health

JF - SSM - Population Health

M1 - 101442

ER -