Objective and subjective stress, personality, and allostatic load

Analyzing the Impact of Family Structure Changes on Children's Stress Levels Using a Stress Biomarker

Changes in family structure (e.g., parental separation or stepfamily formation) are associated with a deterioration in children's well-being. Most researchers have focused on the impact of such changes on children's educational and psychosocial outcomes, whereas the effects on children's biological processes have been studied less often. We analyze the effects of changes in family structure on children's stress levels using data from the German Health Interview and Examination Survey for Children and Adolescents study (2003-2006 and 2014-2017). Our outcome variable is the biomarker c-reactive protein (CRP), which correlates with psychological distress and is collected from blood samples. Calculating first-difference estimators, we analyze whether children have higher CRP levels after changing to (1) single-parent families (n = 117) or (2) stepfamilies (n = 80). Our findings suggest that changing to a single-parent family significantly increases children's stress, whereas changing to a stepfamily does not. These observations are important because increased stress in childhood can negatively affect well-being later in life.

Exploring the association between self-reported and objective measures in search of the restorative quality of natural environments: a systematic review

The benefits of nature contact for psychophysiological restoration have sparked a surge of scientific attention in recent years. The diverse psychophysiological mechanisms of stress recovery make assessment with a single marker impractical. The majority of restoration research employs a holistic approach, including subjective psychological and objective physiological measures concurrently. However, this association has not been decisively supported by empirical studies. The purpose of this systematic review is to determine the degree to which subjectively experienced restoration, as measured by self-reported scales, is associated with actual physiological changes. Searches for peer-reviewed primary research articles were conducted in SCOPUS and PubMed, returning 216 papers; the final synthesis includes 21 empirical studies published between 2008 and 2022. Findings show that there is a strong association between subjective and objective measures of restoration. Further analysis verified that using concurrently self-reported and objective measures in measuring restoration, notably the associations of Profile of Mood States (POMS), Perceived Restorativeness Scale (PRS), and Positive and Negative Affect Scale (PANAS) with Blood Pressure (BP) and Heart Rate (HR), resulted in the highest degree of consistency. However, there were negligible inconsistent associations, which were mainly reported by Restoration Outcome Scale (ROS) in psychological indicators and Salivary Cortisol (SC) and Electroencephalography (EEG) in physiological indicators. This suggests that the results of research that uses these measures simultaneously should be interpreted with caution.

A pre-post study of stressors and burnout affecting breast radiologists before and during the COVID-19 pandemic

Rationale and objective

To compare burnout and stressors of breast radiologists prior to and during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Materials and methods

Members of the Society of Breast Imaging were emailed an IRB-approved survey in January 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic. Survey included questions from the Maslach Burnout Inventory and specific stressors including work pace, work-life balance, care of dependents, and financial strain. Data were compared to previous surveys prior to the pandemic.

Results

The response rate was 25% (261/1061) for those who opened the email. Of the respondents, 74% (194/261) were female, 82% (214/261) were white, 73% (191/261) were full time, 71% (185/261) were fellowship trained, 41% (106/261) had more than 20 years of experience, and 30% (79/261) were in academic practice.Respondents in 2021 reported frequent levels of depersonalization (2.2) and emotional exhaustion (3.4) while reporting frequent levels of personal accomplishment (5.3), a protective factor. These values were nearly identical before the pandemic in 2020: (2.2, 3.5, 5.3, respectively, p = .9). Respondents rated practicing faster than they would like as the highest stressor; however, 5 of the 6 stressors improved after the pandemic onset (p < .05). Conversely, participants perceived these stresses had gotten slightly worse since the pandemic (p < .01). Almost 50% of respondents reported they were considering leaving their practice; the most common reason was work/life balance.

Conclusion

Burnout in breast radiologists remains frequent but unchanged during the COVID-19 pandemic. While participants perceived that some stressors were worse during the pandemic, there was slight improvement in most stressors between the pre-pandemic and pandemic cohorts.

Interest in prenatal stress management training: association with medical risk and mental health

OBJECTIVE

The objective of this study was to document levels of interest in stress management training (SMT) during pregnancy, including differences in interest in SMT across levels of medical risk in pregnancy. We also sought to assess differences in pregnancy-specific stress, prenatal worry and depressed mood across levels of medical risk in pregnancy and investigate predictors of interest in SMT.

METHODS

We surveyed 379 English-speaking, pregnant people living in Vancouver, Canada, between November 2007 and November 2010. Questionnaires were administered during the third trimester and assessed interest and preferred format of SMT, pregnancy-specific stress, prenatal worry, depressed mood and medical risk in pregnancy.

RESULTS

Interest in stress management training programmes during pregnancy was common, with 32% of participants being quite-to-very interested. Preference was split between self-guided study (41%), group counselling (38%) and one-on-one counselling (34%). Higher pregnancy-specific stress and depressed mood, but not medical risk in pregnancy, were associated with higher interest in SMT. Participants experiencing higher stress levels or lower medical risk were more interested in one-on-one counselling.

CONCLUSION

Findings indicate that subjective distress rather than objective circumstances is a better predictor of interest in SMT. Care providers should inquire early-on about interest in SMT during pregnancy and ensure awareness of SMT options.

The Big Five personality traits and allostatic load in middle to older adulthood: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Further understanding of the associations between personality traits and allostatic load (AL) may be important for predicting, addressing, and optimizing health outcomes. This review synthesized the existing literature reporting the association between the Big Five personality traits and AL in adults to identify the generalizability and robustness of relationships, potential mechanisms underlying the associations, and study characteristics that may be contributing to inconsistencies in the field. Published and unpublished empirical reports were included if at least one of the Big Five traits was examined and an AL index was constructed using at least two biomarkers in a sample of adults. The methodological plan and standardized coding guide were pre-registered and reported (https://osf.io/rxw5a). Based on 11 studies that met eligibility, meta-analysis of correlation coefficients indicated a small but significant positive association between neuroticism and AL, and small but significant inverse associations between both conscientiousness and openness with AL. This review identifies strengths and limitations within the field, as well as several avenues for future research.

Exposure to negative life events, change in their perceived impact, and subsequent well-being among U.S. adults: A longitudinal outcome-wide analysis

OBJECTIVE

Negative life events have the potential to undermine an individual's ability to function and thrive, but less is known about the implications of changes in subjective appraisals of those events for long-term well-being. This research examines how exposure to negative life events and subsequent changes in the perceived impact of those events are related to longer-term well-being in adulthood.

METHOD

Drawing on three waves of data from the Midlife in the United States study (M1: 1995-1996, M2: 2004-2006, M3: 2013-2014), we applied the analytic template for outcome-wide longitudinal designs to investigate associations of (a) negative life event exposure between M1 and M2 and (b) change in the perceived impact of negative life event exposure assessed at M2 with 25 outcomes across several domains of well-being assessed approximately 9 years later at M3: psychological distress, psychological well-being, social well-being, prosociality, physical health, and health behavior.

RESULTS

Whereas negative life event exposure was associated with worse subsequent well-being on selected outcomes (5/25 in total) in some domains, positive change in the perceived impact of negative life event exposure was associated with better well-being on one or more outcomes in most domains (11/25 in total). Effect sizes in both sets of analyses were generally small, with more consistent associations found for psychological and social outcomes.

CONCLUSION

Subjective appraisals of negative life events (particularly positive changes in those appraisals over time) may be more closely related to individual well-being in the long run than mere exposure to negative life events themselves. The findings bring attention to the possibility that positive changes in a person's subjective appraisal of negative life events could have beneficial consequences for long-term well-being.

The role of combined modifiable lifestyle behaviors in the longitudinal association between stressful life events and allostatic load in Australian adults

Allostatic load is a model that is used to quantify the physiological damage from exposure to stressors. Stressful life events are chronic stressors that can lead to an elevated allostatic load through the physiological and behavioral stress responses. However, there is limited empirical studies that has tested the proposed behavioural pathway. Our study addresses this gap by examining the mediating role of combined modifiable lifestyle behaviors in the 12-years longitudinal association between stressful life events and allostatic load among participants from the Australian Diabetes, Obesity and Lifestyle (AusDiab) Study cohort. A latent profile analysis was performed to identify latent subgroups with distinct behavioral clusters based on five modifiable lifestyle behaviors (smoking, sedentary behavior, physical activity, alcohol consumption, and diet quality). We then used a sequential mediation model design with path analysis to test the mediating effect of these latent subgroups in the associations between stressful life events and three measures of allostatic load. Indirect effects were estimated using the product of coefficient approach and the statistical significance was determined by the 95% bias-corrected bootstrap confidence intervals with 1000 replications. We identified three latent subgroups: "least healthy lifestyle" (12%; n = 396), "moderately healthy lifestyle" (78.7%; n = 2599), and "most healthy lifestyle" (9.2%; n = 306). Exposure to stressful life events was not associated with the allocation of participants in latent subgroups. Compared to the "moderately healthy lifestyle" subgroups, we found that the "least healthy lifestyle" behavioral cluster was not associated with allostatic load. However, there was a significant inverse association between the "most healthy lifestyle" behavioral cluster and allostatic load. Overall, we did not find significant indirect effects between stressful life events and three measures of allostatic load via the "least healthy lifestyle" and the "most healthy lifestyle" groups. In summary, the combinations of modifiable lifestyle behaviors did not explain the association between stressful life events and allostatic load. More longitudinal studies are needed to replicate our study to confirm this finding.

Association between workaholism, vital exhaustion, and hair cortisol concentrations among teachers: A longitudinal study testing the moderation effect of neuroticism

Introduction

Workaholism in teachers is characterized by the willingness to work until exhausted and may be associated with various adverse health outcomes as well as high economic costs. The present study examines the association between workaholism, vital exhaustion (VE), and hair cortisol concentration (HCC) as indicators of chronic stress. In addition, this study explores the moderating role of the personality trait neuroticism on the relationship between workaholism and chronic stress indicators, i.e., VE and HCC.

Methods

Forty-two Swiss teachers (28 females; M _age = 39.66, SD = 11.99) completed questionnaires assessing VE (Maastricht Vital Exhaustion Questionnaire), workaholism (Measure of Coping Capacity Questionnaire), and neuroticism (Big-Five Inventory). Together with VE, HCC was assessed twice, with a one year lag.

Results

Both workaholism and neuroticism were positively associated with VE at both time points but not with HCC. Moderation analyses revealed a positive relationship between workaholism and VE in teachers with high neuroticism, while no such association was observed in teachers with low neuroticism. No associations were found between self-reports and HCC.

Discussion

These findings emphasize the importance of considering individual characteristics when investigating VE. Further research is necessary to investigate the applicability of HCC as a biomarker of chronic stress in the context of work.

The association between COVID-19-related stressors and mental health outcomes for survivors of past interpersonal and non-interpersonal trauma

The mental health difficulties of trauma survivors during the COVID-19 pandemic have been under-reported. This study explored the moderating role of trauma history and trauma type (interpersonal and non-interpersonal) in the association between COVID-19-related stressors and depression, anxiety, and stress. A sample of n = 321 participants ages 19 to 71 (M = 36.63, SD = 10.36) was recruited from across the United States through MTurk. Participants reported the number of COVID-19-related stressors, trauma history and psychological symptoms. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses, controlling for age, race, ethnicity, gender, education, and income levels, were used to determine (a) whether COVID-19-related stressors are associated with adverse mental health outcomes; (b) whether trauma history and (c) trauma type moderated this association. Results revealed significant interactions; for those with a trauma history, exposure to COVID-19-related stressors was associated with higher levels of depression (β = .21, p < .05) and anxiety (β = .19, p < .05). For those with a history of interpersonal trauma specifically, COVID-19-related stressors were associated with depression (β = .16, p < .05) more so than for those without a trauma history. These findings highlight the vulnerability of trauma survivors to the unprecedented COVID-19-related stress.

Acute stress affects peripersonal space representation in cortisol stress responders

Peripersonal space is the representation of the space near the body. It is implemented by a dedicated multisensory-motor network, whose purpose is to predict and plan interactions with the environment, and which can vary depending on environmental circumstances. Here, we investigated the effect on the PPS representation of an experimentally induced stress response and compared it to a control, non-stressful, manipulation. We assessed PPS representation in healthy humans, before and after a stressful manipulation, by quantifying visuotactile interactions as a function of the distance from the body, while monitoring salivary cortisol concentration. While PPS representation was not significantly different between the control and experimental group, a relation between cortisol response and changes in PPS emerged within the experimental group. Participants who showed a cortisol stress response presented enhanced visuotactile integration for stimuli close to the body and reduced for far stimuli. Conversely, individuals with a less pronounced cortisol response showed a reduced difference in visuotactile integration between the near and the far space. In our interpretation, physiological stress resulted in a freezing-like response, where multisensory-motor resources are allocated only to the area immediately surrounding the body.

Associations Between Maternal Stressful Life Events and Perceived Distress during Pregnancy and Child Mental Health at Age 4

Accumulating evidence suggests that maternal exposure to objectively stressful events and subjective distress during pregnancy may have intergenerational impacts on children's mental health, yet evidence is limited. In a multisite longitudinal cohort (N = 454), we used multi-variable linear regression models to evaluate the predictive value of exposure to stressful events and perceived distress in pregnancy for children's internalizing problems, externalizing problems, and adaptive skills at age 4. We also explored two- and three-way interactions between stressful events, distress, and child sex. Both objective and subjective maternal stress independently predicted children's behavior, with more stressful events and higher distress predicting more internalizing and externalizing problems and worse adaptability; stress types did not significantly interact. There was some evidence that more stressful events predicted higher externalizing behaviors only for girls. Three-way interactions were not significant. The current findings highlight the importance of considering the type of stress measurement being used (e.g., counts of objective event exposure or subjective perceptions), suggest prenatal stress effects may be transdiagnostic, and meet calls for rigor and reproducibility by confirming these independent main effects in a relatively large group of families across multiple U.S. regions. Results point to adversity prevention having a two-generation impact and that pre- and postnatal family-focused intervention targets may help curb the rising rates of children's mental health problems.

Association between perceived distress and salivary cortisol in veterans with mTBI

Mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) is one of the most common injuries experienced by Veterans and can frequently result in a variety of post-concussive symptoms. Post-concussive headaches (PCH), one of the most common symptoms, can persist for years after the injury occurred. The long-lasting impacts of PCH can be extremely distressing for Veterans, thus necessitating the need to find reliable biomarkers that directly relate to subjective feelings of distress. Yoga-based interventions have been shown to improve both subjective and objective markers of stress. Techniques used in yoga, such as the focus on releasing muscular tension, are also recommended as strategies for treating PCH. Thus, yoga-based interventions provide a unique context for the comparison of subjective and objective measures of distress in Veterans with PCH. In this secondary, exploratory analysis, we examined the relationship between perceived distress and cortisol in sixteen Veterans with mTBI and long-term PCH within the context of a yoga intervention feasibility study. The Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), a validated tool for measuring subjective distress, was administered to participants immediately before and after 75-min yoga classes, which occurred twice weekly over eight weeks. Participants also provided salivary cortisol (pre- and post-yoga) at in-person sessions (eight) to compare to changes in VAS scores. We found that VAS scores were significantly reduced within five of the eight assessed yoga classes, but there were no significant changes in cortisol levels. No significant correlations were found between VAS scores and salivary cortisol levels. When looking at how cortisol levels changed over time (i.e., over the series of eight yoga sessions), there was a significant downward trajectory in post-yoga cortisol, but not after taking pre-class cortisol into account (i.e., within yoga session cortisol change over time). Taken together, we found that subjective distress, but not cortisol was reduced by yoga classes. These data suggest that salivary cortisol did not match changes in perceived distress, thus emphasizing the ongoing challenges of relating subjective and objective measures.

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Perceived distress can negatively impact post-concussive symptoms.

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Efforts are needed to relate objective and subjective measures of distress.

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Subjective distress and salivary cortisol were examined within yoga sessions.

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Subjective distress, but not cortisol was reduced within 5 of 8 yoga classes.

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These data highlight the challenges of relating subjective and objective measures.

Age, Education, and Stress Affect Ageing Males' Symptoms More than Lifestyle Does: The Wroclaw Male Study

An increasing number of subjects are affected by health problems related to the advanced involutional processes. It is extremely important to identify the determinants of the rate of occurrence of physiological, psychological, and social manifestations of aging. The aim was to determine how factors such as lifestyle, level of education, or severity of stressful life events indicate the appearance of aging symptoms in adult men. The material consisted of data of ethnically homogeneous group of 355 men (32−87 years), invited to the study as a part of the Wroclaw Male Study research project. The analyzed features included (1) socioeconomic status: age, educational level, marital status, and having children; (2) elements of lifestyle: alcohol drinking, cigarette smoking, and physical activity; (3) major and most important stressful life events—the Social Readjustment Rating Scale; (4) symptoms related to male aging—the Aging Males’ Symptoms. The backward stepwise regression models, the Kruskal−Wallis test, and multiple comparisons of mean ranks were used. Noncentrality parameter δ (delta), two-tailed critical values of the test, and test power with α = 0.05 were calculated. Among the analyzed variables, age was most strongly associated with the intensity of almost all groups of andropausal symptoms in men (p = 0.0001), followed by the level of education (p = 0.0001) and the intensity of stressful life events (p = 0.0108). Selected lifestyle elements turned out to be much less important (p > 0.01). Preventive actions aimed at slowing down the intensification of involutional processes, including teaching strategies for coping with stressful life events, should be implemented in groups of men with specific risk factors from an early age.

A Portable 3D Microfluidic Origami Biosensor for Cortisol Detection in Human Sweat

Analysis of cortisol levels in human sweat is increasingly important as it can be a "stress biomarker" in stress-related disorders, giving real-time information about human health status. In this study, a portable 3D microfluidic origami biosensor based on a smartphone was developed for cortisol-level detection in human sweat. Molybdenum disulfide (MoS₂) nanosheet-mediated fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) and fluorescently labeled aptamers were employed in the biosensing process. A multilayer-structured 3D origami microfluidic chip was fabricated and functionalized to facilitate low-volume perspired human sweat collection, transportation, and detection. The translatability of the biosensor was exhibited by the fluorescence analysis in a smartphone mounted in a custom-designed holder. The critical design parameters of the microfluidic origami biosensor, including the characterization of various paper substrates, the concentration of MoS₂ nanosheets, and the incubation/reaction time, were adjusted to obtain an acceptable range for the assay dynamic range and limit of detection (LOD). Under optimum conditions, various doses of cortisol within the physiologically relevant range of 10-1000 ng/mL reported in human sweat were tested to evaluate the performance of the proposed biosensor. It displayed an LOD of 6.76 ng/mL at 3σ in artificial sweat, an analysis time of 25 min, and high selectivity. The performance of the proposed cortisol sensor was compared with an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for a spiked artificial sweat sample, and a correlation coefficient of 0.988 was found. The proposed biosensor also presented satisfactory results in the determination of the cortisol levels in a real human sweat sample. The resulting portable biosensor provides a rapid, low-cost, convenient, and non-invasive sensing solution for the point-of-care analysis of cortisol levels in sweat.

Educational Concerns, Health Concerns and Mental Health During Early COVID-19 School Closures: The Role of Perceived Support by Teachers, Family, and Friends

This study investigated whether school closures and health-related uncertainties in the early phases of the COVID-19 pandemic posed risk factors for adolescents’ mental health and whether perceived social support by parents, teachers, and friends functioned as protective factors. In particular, we argued that perceived social support would buffer negative associations between educational and health concerns and mental health. Based on a person-centered approach, we first examined resilience profiles. These profiles reflect configurations regarding the levels of these risk and protective factors and levels of mental health. Second, we analyzed whether these risk and protective factors predicted adolescents’ mental health differently by using a variable-centered approach. The sample consisted of 1’562 adolescents (Mage = 16.18, SD = 1.48, range = 14-20 years; 72% females) in lower and higher secondary education from three regions: German-speaking part of Switzerland, N = 486; Italian-speaking part of Switzerland, N = 760; and Northern Italy N = 316. Results from the person-centered approach revealed three latent profiles characterized by low (19%), average (47%), or high resilience (34%). Lower resilience was associated with higher educational concerns, lower perceived social support, and lower mental health, while high resilience was characterized by lower concerns, higher support, and higher mental health. Importantly, educational concerns varied more between profiles than health concerns, and perceived teacher and family support varied more than perceived friend support. Corroborating these findings, the variable-centered approach (i.e., a path analysis) revealed that educational concerns were a stronger predictor than health concerns and pointed to a higher relative importance of perceived family support for adolescents’ mental health relative to perceived teacher and friend support. Taken together, the findings suggest that adolescents’ educational concerns and perceived family support, respectively, were stronger risk and protective factors for their mental health during school closures related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Finally, adolescents from regions being more exposed to the COVID-19 pandemic, namely, Italian-speaking part of Switzerland and Northern Italy, were more likely classified in the low or the average rather than in the high resilience profile compared to students from the region with lower exposure, that is, the German-speaking part of Switzerland.

Salivary cytokine cluster moderates the association between caregivers perceived stress and emotional functioning in youth

Some individuals exposed to early life stress show evidence of enhanced systemic inflammation and are at greater risk for psychopathology. In the current study, caregivers and their offspring (0-17 years) were recruited at a pediatric clinic visit at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). Mothers and seven-year-old children from the Growing Up inSingaporeTowards healthy Outcomes (GUSTO) prospective birth cohort were used as a replication cohort. Caregivers perceived stress was measured to determine potential intergenerational effects on the children's functioning and inflammation levels. Children's emotional functioning in the UCSF cohort was evaluated using the Pediatric Quality of Life (PedsQL) inventory. Child emotional and behavioral functioning was measured using the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) in GUSTO. Saliva was collected from the children and salivary levels of IL-6, IL-1β, IL-8 and TNF-α were measured using an electrochemiluminescent cytokine multiplex panel. Child IL-6, IL-1β, IL-8 cytokine levels were clustered into low, average, and high cytokine cluster groups using hierarchical cluster analysis. We did not find that salivary cytokine clusters were significantly associated with children's emotional or behavioral function. However, cytokine clusters did significantly moderate the association between increased caregiver perceived stress and reduced child emotional functioning (UCSF cohort) and increased Attention-Deficit-Hyperactivity (ADH) problems (GUSTO cohort, uncorrected Cohen's F2 = 0.02). Using a cytokine clustering technique may be useful in identifying those children exposed to increased caregiver perceived stress that are at risk of emotional and attention deficit hyperactivity problems.

Effects of Life Events and Social Isolation on Stroke and Coronary Heart Disease

The current coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic represents a severe, life-changing event for people across the world. Life changes may involve job loss, income reduction due to furlough, death of a beloved one, or social stress due to life habit changes. Many people suffer from social isolation due to lockdown or physical distancing, especially those living alone and without family. This article reviews the association of life events and social isolation with cardiovascular disease, assembling the current state of knowledge for stroke and coronary heart disease. Possible mechanisms underlying the links between life events, social isolation, and cardiovascular disease are outlined. Furthermore, groups with increased vulnerability for cardiovascular disease following life events and social isolation are identified, and clinical implications of results are presented.

The Impact of the Environment on the Quality of Life and the Mediating Effects of Sleep and Stress

(1) Background: Environment is an independent factor that affects one’s quality of life (QoL), where studies suggest that health behaviours also affect one’s quality of life. The purpose of the present study was to examine the association between environmental conditions and QoL and how individual health behaviours affect this association. (2) Methods: Participants aged 20 or above were recruited from 11 tertiary planning units in the central part of Kowloon. These tertiary planning units were selected as they represented the overall living environment in Hong Kong, with a mix of the poorer urban areas alongside relatively affluent districts. A mediation analysis was implemented using multiple linear regressions to examine the effects of environmental conditions on QoL. (3) Results: Of the 607 eligible participants included for analysis, 390 were female and 217 were male, with a mean age of 47.4 years. Living within 500 m of a green space area had benefits on the physical aspect of QoL and physical activity but no effect on the psychological aspect of QoL. Moderate satisfaction with public spaces affected QoL positively. In contrast, less satisfaction with public spaces affected QoL negatively in both physical and psychological aspects through the mediating effect of stress. Poor environmental quality affected all domains of QoL negatively through the mediating effects of increased stress and poor sleep. (4) Conclusions: Environment is an important factor that affects individuals’ overall well-being. The interaction between environmental conditions and individual variables, especially perceived stress and sleep, is extremely important when assessing its impact on QoL. The findings of this study support the importance of individual stress and sleep in mediating the relationship between the environment and QoL for health. Further studies should be conducted to include objective measurements, such as those of cortisol levels for stress and physical fitness tests.

Objective and subjective stress, personality, and allostatic load

INTRODUCTION

Despite the understanding of allostatic load (AL) as a consequence of ongoing adaptation to stress, studies of the stress-AL association generally focus on a narrow conceptualization of stress and have thus far overlooked potential confounding by personality. The present study examined the cross-sectional association of objective and subjective stress with AL, controlling for Big Five personality traits.

METHODS

Participants comprised 5,512 members of the Copenhagen Aging and Midlife Biobank aged 49-63 years (69% men). AL was measured as a summary index of 14 biomarkers of the inflammatory, cardiovascular, and metabolic system. Objective stress was assessed as self-reported major life events in adult life. Subjective stress was assessed as perceived stress within the past four weeks.

RESULTS

Both stress measures were positively associated with AL, with a slightly stronger association for objective stress. Adjusting for personality traits did not significantly change these associations.

CONCLUSIONS

The results suggest measures of objective and subjective stress to have independent predictive validity in the context of personality. Further, it is discussed how different operationalizations of stress and AL may account for some of the differences in observed stress-AL associations.