Allostatic load

Allostatic load is the cumulative wear and tear your body racks up from adapting to chronic stress. Here is the idea. Your systems keep adjusting to keep you stable, a process called allostasis. The running cost of all that adjustment adds up. Bruce McEwen and Eliot Stellar introduced the concept in 1993. In research, it becomes a composite score across several biomarker systems. Those include stress hormones (like cortisol and DHEA-S), plus cardiovascular, metabolic, and immune markers. A higher allostatic load predicts death from all causes, heart disease, cognitive decline, and faster biological aging. It also helps explain how poverty and disadvantage translate into worse health. In longevity research, it shows how years of stress turn into measurable organ-system dysfunction.

Last reviewed: June 22, 2026

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