Examining the Role of Allostatic Load and Neighborhood Context in Cognitive Function Trajectories among Midlife and Older Americans - Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a serious health concern for older Americans for which there is currently no cure. The multi-level determinants of cognitive function, an early-stage component of the AD continuum, are less understood in the aging American population. Allostatic load (AL), an indicator of multisystem (e.g., nervous, cardiovascular) physiological dysregulation driven by chronic stress, may be one determinant of declining cognitive function. The neighborhood is an emerging determinant of cognitive function that may be especially relevant for older adults who are aging in neighborhoods of varied conditions. Neighborhood characteristics together with perceived neighborhood stressors may exacerbate AL, to the detriment of cognitive function for midlife and older adults. The overall research objective is to examine the relationship between AL and cognitive function and whether this association is impacted by both objective neighborhood characteristics (i.e., neighborhood demographics) and perceived neighborhood stressors (i.e., high disorder and low cohesion) in midlife and older adults. Secondary, longitudinal data will come from the 2006-2016 waves of the Health and Retirement Study, a nationally representative study of health among the midlife and older (>50 years of age) US adult population. Specific aims for this project include: (Aim 1) testing the relationship between AL and cognitive function using baseline linear regression and growth curve models; (Aim 2) examining the moderating roles of neighborhood demographic characteristics on the relationship between AL and cognitive function to predict baseline cognitive function and change over time using cross-sectional linear regression models and growth curve models; and (Aim 3) analyzing the association between AL, perceived neighborhood stressors, and cognitive function in baseline linear models and growth curve models stratified by levels of neighborhood demographic characteristics. The positive impact of the proposed research will be an increased understanding of complex, multifactorial place-based and physiological determinants of cognitive function among midlife and older Americans. Furthermore, by mentoring undergraduate and graduate students, I will contribute to increasing the aging research pipeline and expanding my university’s population health and aging research capacity.
