Table 3.
A partial list of preexisting influencing factors and challenges that may affect the development and manifestations of psychosocial and physiological allostatic load (informed by Beckie, 2012; Johnson et al., 2017; Sandifer et al., 2020b; Epel et al., 2018; Christensen et al., 2019; Fava et al., 2019; Milad and Bogg, 2020; White et al., 2020; Obeng-Gyasi et al., 2021). This list is intended to be illustrative and is not exhaustive.
| Behavioral Factors | Genetics |
|---|---|
| Diet | Family disease history |
| Smoking | Known genetic issues (e.g., BRCA gene for breast cancer |
| Alcohol/drug use | Personality Traits |
| Physical exercise | Type A vs Type B personality |
| Sleep Habits | Agreeableness |
| Biographical/Demographic Factors | Conscientiousness |
| Age | Extraversion |
| Sex/Gender/Preference | Neuroticism |
| Marital/partner status | Openness |
| Children | Psychosocial Factors |
| Socioeconomic & Educational status (SEES) | Anxiety, including illness anxiety |
| Employment status | Depression |
| Occupation | Optimism |
| Work environment | Pessimism |
| Income | Anger/hostility |
| Childhood Experiences | Coping |
| Adverse childhood experiences (ACES) | Self-mastery |
| Economic, social, or other deprivation | Sense of control |
| Clinical Factors | Resilience |
| Chronic disease (e.g., CVD, diabetes, cancer) | Loneliness/isolation |
| Treatment | Feelings of security/insecurity |
| Medications | Quality of life |
| Medical Procedures | |
| Environmental Factors | Stress/Trauma History |
| Neighborhood characteristics (including “green” and “blue” spaces) | Previous highly stressful events, times of occurrence, duration, time course |
| Social and familial support | Current major stressors |
| Cultural and/or religious aspects | Chronic stress (e.g., from care giving, job) |
| Health care | |
| Housing status | |
| Exposure to toxic or disease-causing substances or organisms |