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Longitudinal Changes in Allostatic Load during a Randomized Church-based, Lifestyle Intervention in African American

Marissa Tan1, Abdullah Mamun2,3, Heather Kitzman3

  • 1Bassett Medical Center, Cooperstown, New York.

Ethnicity & Disease
|May 7, 2019
PubMed

Insights

Lifestyle interventions reduced allostatic load (AL) in African American women. Lower education and alcohol use were linked to increased AL, highlighting the need for tailored interventions to improve cardiovascular health.

Area of Science:

  • Public Health
  • Cardiovascular Health
  • Health Disparities

Background:

  • African American (AA) women face higher cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk compared to White women.
  • Elevated allostatic load (AL) in AA women may contribute to this disparity.
  • Limited research exists on lifestyle interventions' impact on AL in AA women.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To evaluate changes in allostatic load (AL) after a lifestyle intervention in AA women.
  • To investigate the influence of lifestyle behaviors and socioeconomic factors on AL reduction.

Main Methods:

  • A church-based, cluster randomized trial involved 221 non-diabetic AA women.
  • Intervention included a standard or faith-enhanced diabetes prevention program (DPP) over 4 months.
  • Multilevel multinomial logistic regression analyzed changes in AL, lifestyle, and socioeconomic factors.

Main Results:

  • Average AL significantly decreased by -.13±.99 (P=.02) from baseline to 4 months.
  • Lower educational attainment (high school or less) and alcohol consumption were associated with increased AL.
  • Neighborhood disadvantage showed a trend towards increasing AL, but was not statistically significant.

Conclusions:

  • Lifestyle interventions can reduce allostatic load (AL) in African American women.
  • Lower education levels may impede the effectiveness of lifestyle interventions for AL reduction.
  • Further research is needed to understand how lifestyle behaviors and socioeconomic factors influence AL in this population.
Abstract

Keywords:
Allostatic LoadChurch-based ProgramHealth BehaviorsLifestyle Intervention

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