These studies overwhelmingly support the notion that social connectedness correlates negatively with allostatic load .
Several moderators of this relationship were also identified , including gender , social status , and quality of social ties .
The current evidence strongly indicates that the more socially connected individuals are , the less likely they are to experience chronic stress and associated allostatic load .
The negative association between social connectedness and various chronic diseases can thus , at least partially , be explained by the buffering qualities of social connectedness against allostatic load .
We argue that assessing social connectedness in clinical and epidemiological setting s may therefore represent a considerable asset in terms of prevention and intervention
In the present review , we argue that social disconnectedness could and should be included in primary -care screening protocol s for the detection of cardiometabolic disease .
Empirical evidence indicates that weak social connectedness represents a serious risk factor for chronic diseases , including cardiovascular disease , diabetes , and various cancers .
Weak social connectedness , however , is largely regarded as a second-tier health-risk factor in clinical and research setting s. This may be because the mechanisms by which this factor impacts on physical health are poorly understood .
Budding research , however , advances the idea that social connectedness buffers against stress-related allostatic load-a known precursor for cardiovascular disease and cancer .
The present paper review s the empirical knowledge on the relationship between everyday stress , social connectedness , and allostatic load .
Social relationships and their biological correlates: Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) study
OBJECTIVE Analyses test the hypothesis that aspects of social relationships ( quantity of ties , social support and social strain ) are associated with differences in levels of biological risk across multiple major physiological regulatory systems and consequently overall multi-systems risk ( i.e. , allostatic load [ AL ] ) . METHODS Data are from the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults ( CARDIA ) study --a bi-ethnic , prospect i ve , multi-center epidemiological study , initiated in 1985 - 1986 to track the development of cardiovascular risk in young adulthood ( N=5115 ) . At the year 15 follow-up when participants were between 32 and 45 years of age , additional social and biological data were collected ; biological data used to assess AL were collected at the Oakl and , CA and Chicago , IL sites ( N=844 ) . RESULTS Social strains were most strongly and positively related to overall AL ( Cohen 's d=.79 for highest vs. lowest quartile ) , and to each of its component biological subsystems , independent of social ties and support as well as sociodemographics and health behaviors . Social ties and emotional support were also negatively related to AL ( Cohen 's d=.33 and d=.44 for lowest vs. highest quartiles of ties and support , respectively ) though controls for social strains reduced these associations to non- significance . Social support and social strain were more strongly related to overall AL than to any of its component subscales while social ties were less strongly related to AL and to its component subscales . There was no evidence that effects differed by sex , age or ethnicity . CONCLUSIONS Findings focus attention on the particularly strong relationship between social strains and profiles of biological risk and support the cumulative impact of social factors on biological risks , showing larger effects for cumulative AL than for any of the individual biological systems
These studies overwhelmingly support the notion that social connectedness correlates negatively with allostatic load .
Several moderators of this relationship were also identified , including gender , social status , and quality of social ties .
The current evidence strongly indicates that the more socially connected individuals are , the less likely they are to experience chronic stress and associated allostatic load .
The negative association between social connectedness and various chronic diseases can thus , at least partially , be explained by the buffering qualities of social connectedness against allostatic load .
We argue that assessing social connectedness in clinical and epidemiological setting s may therefore represent a considerable asset in terms of prevention and intervention
In the present review , we argue that social disconnectedness could and should be included in primary -care screening protocol s for the detection of cardiometabolic disease .
Empirical evidence indicates that weak social connectedness represents a serious risk factor for chronic diseases , including cardiovascular disease , diabetes , and various cancers .
Weak social connectedness , however , is largely regarded as a second-tier health-risk factor in clinical and research setting s. This may be because the mechanisms by which this factor impacts on physical health are poorly understood .
Budding research , however , advances the idea that social connectedness buffers against stress-related allostatic load-a known precursor for cardiovascular disease and cancer .
The present paper review s the empirical knowledge on the relationship between everyday stress , social connectedness , and allostatic load .