Stress, health and ageing: a focus on postmenopausal women.

Stress influences health and disease and this might be of special relevance for ageing. The present review starts with the description of age-associated changes of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis. In this context, the possible modulatory role of estradiol is discussed. Later, the influence of rising stress hormone levels for the ageing brain is illustrated and a few intervention strategies are outlined. At the end, the concept of allostatic load (AL) is described, which aims at a broader assessment of the impact of stress on the individual. The strengths and also the current limitations of the AL concept are highlighted.