A tendency for stress reactivity, which increases the likelihood of negative health consequences from persistent exposure to stressful situations, can be wired by early experiences of trauma.

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While the stress response is adaptive for brief threats, it is not meant to withstand long-term, perpetual threats.  When this happens, poor health outcomes like hypertension can occur.  Systems of oppression are an example of a more perpetual threat.  Thus, systems of oppression are linked to poor health outcomes.  An example of this is over-policing in lower income neighborhoods being correlated with hypertension in African Americans, or workplace sexism being related to incidence of breast cancer in women. 

Stress response and poor health outcomes

Spielman, R. M., Jenkins, W. J., & Lovett, M. D. (2020, April 22). Psychology (2nd ed.). OpenStax. https://openstax.org/books/psychology-2e/pages/1-introduction

OpenStax Psychology (2nd ed.) Textbook

Since laws and policies are a prime example of societal-level structures, it follows that they have an impact on the health of those impacted by the law/policy.  Interestingly, this relationship has two sides; laws/policies that have a positive effect on the involved population (e.g. legalization of same-sex marriage) are a protective factor to that population's health.

Laws and policies impacting health outcomes

A longitudinal study finds that a population living with persistent food insecurity and housing instability exhibits significantly higher rates of chronic inflammatory diseases compared to a population with stable access to food and housing. This difference remains even after controlling for individual dietary choices and genetic factors. Which of the following statements best analyzes the physiological link between these living conditions and the observed health outcome?

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