title: Social gradient in allostatic load among Danish men and women in late midlife.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The objective of the present study is to describe the prevalence of allostatic load (AL) among Danish men and women in late midlife, and if there is a social gradient in AL.
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 5,420 participants from the Copenhagen Aging and Midlife Biobank (CAMB) aged 48 to 63 years (68.5% men, 31.5% women) underwent a health examination including standardized measures of height, weight, body fat, and blood pressure in 2009-2011. AL (range 0-14) was established by summing the scores of the poorest quartile for each of 14 biological variables related to the metabolic and immune systems.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We found a social gradient in AL in late midlife among men and women living in Denmark.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  AL may be a potential biomarker for early aging in countries with a strong social welfare system. It is important for intervention studies to be aware of this type of biological vulnerability already present in late midlife.
authors.affiliation: University of Copenhagen, Denmark.
authors.forename: Åse Marie
authors.initials: ÅM
authors.lastname: Hansen
authors.forename: Rikke
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Lund
authors.forename: Helle
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Bruunsgaard
authors.forename: Naja Hulvej
authors.initials: NH
authors.lastname: Rod
authors.forename: Anne Helene
authors.initials: AH
authors.lastname: Garde
authors.forename: Drude
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Molbo
authors.forename: Kirsten
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Avlund
mesh_terms: D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology*; D052636:Allostasis; D015415:Biomarkers; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003718:Denmark / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D054624:Health Status Disparities; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors; D017678:Sex Distribution; D012923:Social Class
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers
keywords: biomarkers; health behaviors; social factors