Different stressors across the life course have different paths to impact cognitive and physical aging

Stress has a clear impact on health and function. Yet, little is known about how different stressors (factors that cause stress) in various contexts throughout the life course impact cognitive and physical aging. The study aimed to investigate if different types of stressors predicted cognitive and physical impairment in late life. The role of social support and internal locus of control was also investigated.

Two individually linked studies of Swedish nationally representative samples provided longitudinal data over 21 years, including retrospective childhood data (n = 1086). Indicators of work and financial stressors were assessed at late midlife (M=62 years) and financial stressors at early late life (M=70). Social support and internal locus of control were assessed at the mean ages of 62 and 70 years. Physical and cognitive impairment were assessed at late life (M=83). Path analyses were conducted with maximum likelihood estimation and adjusted for smoking, age, sex, educational attainment, and follow-up period.

Work stressors were associated with physical and cognitive impairment directly. Work stressors were also associated with financial stressors, which, in turn, were associated with physical impairment. Childhood conflicts were associated with less social support, and less social support was associated with worse cognitive aging. Internal locus of control was not associated with cognitive and physical impairment.

This study confirms that stressors earlier in life predict cognitive and physical aging, but that different types of stressors have different paths to impact impairment in late life.