About

Allison Aiello, PhD, is the James S. Jackson Healthy Longevity Professor of Epidemiology at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health and the Interim Director of the Robert N. Butler Columbia Aging Center. Her research explores how economic, psychological, and biological factors influence healthy longevity, cognitive function, and the development of Alzheimer’s disease. She focuses on how stressful experiences across the life course impact biological aging, particularly immune system aging (immunosenescence), as a key pathway linking stress and health throughout the aging process. Dr. Aiello has contributed to the development of the Add Health Cognitive Assessment, Physical and Sensory Function protocol (Add CAPS), which integrates digital assessments to create a landmark US representative neurocognitive dataset of nearly 12,000 participants in early midlife. She has directed efforts to collect physical and sensory function measures, important early indicators of cognitive decline, thereby expanding research capacity to understand how biological and social factors shape cognitive aging and dementia risk long before symptoms appear. Her work is supported by multiple grants and she has received numerous honors, including the Carol J. Rowland Hogue Award for Outstanding Mid-Career Achievement in Epidemiology.

Research topics

• Medicine
• Computer Science
• Political Science
• Internal medicine
• Demography
• Gerontology
• Biology
• Psychology
• Sociology
• Pathology
• Clinical psychology
• Immunology
• Virology
• Psychiatry
• Environmental health
• Machine Learning
• Genetics
• Data science
• Family medicine
• Internet privacy
• Public relations
• Bioinformatics
• Algorithm
• Geography

Selected publications

• Individuals’ Experience of Violence in Adolescence and Firearm Violence Victimization in Early Adulthood

  Journal of Interpersonal Violence · 2026-03-28

  article

  Firearm violence is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality among adolescents and young adults in the United States. Prior research has identified numerous predictors of non-fatal firearm injury; however, there is limited evidence on the longitudinal impacts of violence exposure during adolescence specifically on firearm violence victimization later in life. Using data from the first three waves (1994-2002) of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health), we conducted a path analysis using survey-weighted generalized structural equation models to identify associations between exposures to violence and weapons during adolescence and firearm violence victimization during early adulthood. Analyses controlled for participant age, sex, race/ethnicity, and rurality of residence as reported in Wave 1. In fully adjusted and trimmed models, violence perpetration, violence exposure, and weapon carrying in adolescence were independently associated either directly or indirectly with participants' self-reports of being shot and with having a gun pulled on them in early adulthood. Firearm violence victimization in Wave 1 was associated with being shot in Wave 3. A notable path between violence exposure in Wave 1 and being shot in Wave 3 was via weapon carrying in Wave 2. Interventions aimed at reducing weapon carrying among adolescents who have been exposed to violence may represent a modifiable way in which firearm violence victimization in early adulthood can be reduced.

  PublisherDOI

• Infection

  UNC Libraries · 2026-04-10

  articleOpen access1st authorCorresponding

  This document summarizes the rationale, equipment, protocol, assay, internal quality control, data cleaning, external quality control, and procedures for the measurement and classification of biomarkers of infection exposure at the Wave VI home exam. Whenever possible, data collection and methods in Wave VI mirrored those of Wave V to ensure comparability of data between waves, although important inter-Wave differences between Waves IV-VI exist and are grey-highlighted herein. This document is one in a set of Wave VI user guides.

  PublisherDOI

• <i>Helicobacter pylori</i> seroprevalence and its association with prevalent and incident blood pressure and haemoglobin A1c in the US-based National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health

  BMJ Public Health · 2026-01-01

  articleOpen access

  Introduction Chronic Helicobacter pylori ( H. pylori ) infection may increase the risk of hypertension (HTN) and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2D), but association studies have produced mixed results. This cross-sectional and longitudinal study examined whether H. pylori seropositivity was associated with elevated blood pressure (BP), haemoglobin A1c (HbA1c), prevalent and incident HTN, and T2D over 10 years. Methods Add Health, a US-based cohort study, has followed participants from adolescence in the mid-1990s (wave I) through early midlife (wave V) in 2016–2018. Wave IV (n=15 701) participants were tested for immunoglobulin antibodies to H. pylori with a binary seropositivity cut-off (≥13.217 U/mL). Systolic BP (SBP), diastolic BP (DBP) and HbA1c were measured at waves IV and V. Prevalent HTN was defined as SBP ≥140 mm Hg and/or DBP ≥90 mm Hg, self-reported HTN or HTN medication use at wave IV. Prevalent T2D was defined as HbA1c ≥6.5%, self-reported T2D or T2D medication use at wave IV. Incident HTN and T2D at wave V were defined among participants without HTN or T2D at wave IV. Multivariable linear and Poisson regression models determined prevalence differences (PD) and incidence rate ratios, respectively, with 95% CIs. Results The median (IQR) ages in waves IV and V were 28 (27, 30) and 37 (36, 39) years, respectively, with 54% female in 4600 participants; 958 (20.8%) were seropositive for H. pylori . In adjusted models, seropositive participants had lower mean SBP (PD −1.62, 95% CI −3.06 to –0.18) than seronegative participants. H. pylori seropositivity was not associated with DBP, HbA1c, prevalent and incident HTN, or T2D. Conclusions In a cohort of younger adults, H. pylori seropositivity was not associated with prevalent or incident HTN and T2D. More studies are required to understand the interaction between infectious disease and chronic cardiometabolic disorders and how it can change as people age.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Inflammation and Immune Function

  UNC Libraries · 2026-04-29

  articleOpen access

  This document summarizes the rationale, equipment, measurement, protocol and data cleaning procedures for each of the inflammation measures collected at the Wave VI home exam. It also documents how constructed variables were derived from the inflammation measures collected in the field. Whenever possible, data collection and methods in Wave VI mirrored those of Wave V to ensure comparability of data between waves, although important inter-Wave differences between Waves IV-VI exist and are grey-highlighted herein.&nbsp;

  PublisherDOI

• Changes in financial well-being and memory function and decline in middle-aged and older adults

  American Journal of Epidemiology · 2026-03-14

  articleOpen access

  Many older adults experience financial insecurity. While prior studies link lower later-life SES, financial stress, and financial shocks to worse cognitive outcomes, limited research has examined how dynamic changes in financial well-being-a multidimensional measure of financial circumstances-influence cognitive aging. Here, we examined associations between changes in financial well-being and memory outcomes among 7676 adults aged 50+ in the Health and Retirement Study ("HRS," 2010-2020). We developed and validated an 8-item index of poor financial well-being using existing HRS survey items aligned with domains from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's Financial Well-Being Scale. In confounder-adjusted linear mixed-effects models, we estimated associations of average financial well-being and significant improvements or worsening in financial well-being over four years with changes in memory z-scores calculated biennially from 2016-2020. Each 1-point worsening in average financial well-being was associated with poorer memory function (β = -0.009 SD, 95% CI, -0.020 to 0.003) and accelerated decline (β = -0.007 SD/year, 95% CI, -0.010 to -0.003). Associations were largest for participants with significant worsening of financial well-being and for those aged ≥65 at baseline. Results were robust to sensitivity analyses addressing potential reverse causation and attrition. These findings suggest that midlife and later-life declines in financial well-being may contribute to accelerated cognitive aging.

  PublisherDOI

• Home Exam Health & Quality Control Metrics

  UNC Libraries · 2026-04-10

  articleOpen access

  This user guide is new at Wave VI. It briefly describes several health and quality control metrics from the Wave VI home exam questionnaire and biomarker collection that are not described elsewhere but may be valuable to researchers.&nbsp;

  PublisherDOI

• Widowhood, Immune Aging, and Mortality in Older Americans: Evidence from the US health and retirement study

  The Journals of Gerontology Series A · 2026-05-09

  articleSenior author

  BACKGROUND: Widowhood has been linked to increased mortality risk, particularly among men, but the biological mechanisms remain unknown. Given the impacts of stress on immune function, we hypothesized that widowhood leads to increased mortality by impacting immunity. METHODS: Data from 8,410 US adults aged 56 and older in the Health and Retirement Study, including flow cytometry of blood samples, survey data, and mortality, were analyzed. Associations between widowhood, immunosenescence (measured by the CD8+:CD4+ Ratio, EMRA CD4+:Naïve CD4+ Ratio, EMRA CD8+:Naïve CD8+ Ratio), and mortality were examined using linear regression and Cox proportional hazards models. RESULTS: Men and women who experienced widowhood and who showed signs of more advanced immune-system aging were at increased mortality risk. Widowed men consistently had more aged T-cells than married men across multiple measures. However, among widowed women, this association was observed only for the EMRA CD4+:Naïve CD4+ ratio. Elevated levels of aged T-cells partially mediated the relationship between widowhood and mortality, with a stronger mediating effect observed in men than in women. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings indicate that bereavement accelerates immunosenescence, contributing to the increased mortality risk observed in widowed men and revealing a biologically grounded pathway with potential for amelioration.

  PublisherDOI

• Wave VI Neurodegeneration

  UNC Libraries · 2026-01-07

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  This document summarizes the rationale, equipment, protocol, assay, internal quality control, data cleaning, external quality control, and procedures for the measurement and classification of neurodegeneration at the Wave VI home exam. Whenever possible, data collection and methods in Wave VI mirrored those of Wave V to ensure comparability of data between waves, although important inter-Wave differences between Waves V-VI exist and are grey-highlighted herein. This document is one in a set of Wave VI user guides.&nbsp;

  PublisherDOI

• Cardiovascular Measures Appendix I: Baroreflex Sensitivity & Hemodynamic Recovery

  UNC Libraries · 2026-03-25

  articleOpen access

  This is an appendix to Add Health Wave VI Documentation: Cardiovascular Measures. Please refer to that user guide for complete descriptions of the cardiovascular data collection procedures and measures disseminated by the study at that time. In addition to the measures described there, this appendix introduces three more constructed measures that are included in the Add Health Wave VI data:&nbsp; &bull; &nbsp; &nbsp;Baroreflex sensitivity<br />&bull; &nbsp; &nbsp;Pulse rate recovery<br />&bull; &nbsp; &nbsp;Systolic blood pressure recovery

  PublisherDOI

• Nonuniversality of inflammaging across human populations

  Nature Aging · 2025-06-30 · 45 citations

  article
  PublisherDOI

Recent grants

• Epigenomic Predictors of PTSD and Traumatic Stress in an African American Cohort

  NIH · $5.7M · 2017–2027

• Administrative and Research Support Core

  NIH · $5.2M · 2020–2027

• NIH Grant RC1MH088283

  NIH · $995k · 2012

• NIH Grant R01DK087864

  NIH · $2.6M · 2017

• NIH Grant R01AG040115

  NIH · $1.7M · 2017

Frequent coauthors

• Monica Uddin

  Boston University

  157 shared

• Mary N. Haan

  University of California, San Francisco

  110 shared

• Karestan C. Koenen

  109 shared

• Sandro Galea

  Boston University

  106 shared

• Daniel W. Belsky

  Canadian Institute for Advanced Research

  88 shared

• Yang Claire Yang

  University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

  86 shared

• Brenda L. Plassman

  Duke University

  81 shared

• Derek E. Wildman

  Florida College

  78 shared

Labs

• Community Advisory BoardPI

Education

• Ph.D., Environmental Health Sciences

  Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health

  2000

• M.S., Environmental Health Sciences

  University of California, Berkeley

  1995

• B.S., Environmental Health Sciences

  University of California, Berkeley

  1993

Awards & honors

• 2019 Carol J. Rowland Hogue Award for Outstanding Mid-Career…
• 2010 Yerby Visiting Associate Professorship, Dept of Epidemi…
• 2009 John G. Searle Assistant Professorship of Public Health…
• 2006, 2007 Junior Faculty Training Award, Univ of Michigan O…