Social support
Individuals with lower levels of social support have: more cardiovascular disease, more inflammation and less effective immune system functioning, more complications during pregnancy, and more functional disability and pain associated with rheumatoid arthritis, among many other findings. Conversely, higher rates of social support have been associated with numerous positive outcomes, including faster recovery from coronary artery surgery, less susceptibility to herpes attacks, a lowered likelihood to show age-related cognitive decline, and better diabetes control. People with higher social support are also less likely to develop colds and are able to recover faster if they are ill from a cold. There is sufficient evidence linking cardiovascular, neuroendocrine, and immune system function with higher levels of social support. Social support predicts less atherosclerosis and can slow the progression of an already diagnosed cardiovascular disease. There is also a clearly demonstrated link between social support and better immune function, especially in older adults. While links have been shown between neuroendocrine functionality and social support, further understanding is required before specific significant claims can be made. Social support is also hypothesized to be beneficial in the recovery from less severe cancers. Research focuses on breast cancers, but in more serious cancers factors such as severity and spread are difficult to measure in the context of impacts of social support. The field of physical health often struggles with the combination of variables set by external factors that are difficult to control, such as the entangled impact of life events on social support and the buffering impact these events have. There are serious ethical concerns involved with controlling too many factors of social support in individuals, leading to an interesting crossroads in the research.