Humans are arguably the most ‘social’ of social mammals, so it is no surprise that the functioning of our minds and bodies are intricately tied to characteristics of our social interactions and social relationships. Perhaps one of the most potent social influences on our biological functioning is our status in society and social groups that are important to us. Such status, often measured as socioeconomic status, has been shown in hundreds of studies to be linked to mental and physical health, including the likelihood that we’ll be depressed or anxious, develop a disease, and how long we’ll live. Our research suggests that there are many biological pathways through which social status gets under the skin to affect the likelihood of poor health outcomes as we age. From hormones of our endocrine system, to proteins of our immune system, to cardiovascular and metabolic processes, all appear to be sensitive to our status in society and the quantity and quality of our social relationships.