The association of daily physical symptoms with future health

Loneliness dynamics and physical health symptomology among midlife adults in daily life

OBJECTIVE

The current study examined how average daily loneliness (between-persons [BPs]), intraindividual variability in loneliness across days (within-persons [WPs]), and loneliness stability informed physical health symptomatology.

METHOD

We utilized daily diary data from a national sample of 1,538 middle-aged adults (Mage = 51.02; 57.61% women) who completed eight end-of-day telephone interviews about daily experiences, including loneliness and physical health symptoms (e.g., headaches, nausea). Via multilevel modeling, we examined average daily loneliness (BPs), intraindividual variability in loneliness (WPs), stability in loneliness (individual mean-squared successive difference) in association with the number and average severity of daily physical health symptoms.

RESULTS

When participants were less lonely on average, and on days when loneliness was lower than a person's average, they had fewer and less severe physical health symptoms. Additionally, participants who were more stable in loneliness across 8 days had less severe physical health symptoms. Further, there was a stronger association between instability in loneliness and more physical health symptoms for people who were lonelier on average. Finally, the increase in physical health symptom severity associated with WP loneliness was strongest for participants with low variability in loneliness.

CONCLUSION

Loneliness is associated with physical health symptoms on a day-to-day basis, especially for people who are highly variable in loneliness. Considerations of multiple sources of variation in daily loneliness may be necessary to adequately address loneliness and promote health. Public health interventions addressing loneliness may be most effective if they support social connectedness in people's everyday lives in ways that promote stable, low levels of loneliness. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Nightly Sleep Predicts Next-Morning Expectations for Stress and Positive Experiences

OBJECTIVE

Abundant research has linked nightly sleep as an antecedent of daily psychosocial experiences; however, less is known about sleep's influence on daily expectations of these experiences. Therefore, this research examined the day-to-day associations of sleep quality, duration, and efficiency with next-day expectations for stress(ors) and positive experiences, as well as whether these expectations were related to end-of-day reports of physical symptoms.

METHODS

In Study 1, U.S. adults ( n = 354; ages 19 to 74) completed twice-daily diaries for 10 weekdays about sleep, expectations for encountering daily stressors and positive events, and physical symptoms. In Study 2, adults in Canada ( n = 246; ages 25 to 87) wore a sleep watch for 14 consecutive days and completed mobile surveys 5×/day about sleep, stressfulness and pleasantness expectations, and physical symptoms.

RESULTS

Multilevel models indicated that self-reported sleep quality and duration, but not efficiency, were associated with lower next-day expectations for stressors (Study 1) and stressfulness (Study 2). Self-reported sleep quality (Study 1) and all sleep indices (Study 2) predicted greater next-day expectations for positive events and pleasantness, respectively. For actigraphy-assessed sleep (Study 2), only longer-than-usual actigraphic sleep duration was associated with lower stressfulness expectations, whereas both sleep duration and efficiency were positively linked with daily pleasantness expectations. Only pleasantness expectations (Study 2)-but not daily stressfulness and event expectations (Study 1)-predicted end-of-day physical symptoms.

CONCLUSION

Findings suggest the importance of sleep on expectations of next-day stress and positive experiences, of which may have implications for daily physical health.

Combined effects of cumulative stress and daily stressors on daily health

OBJECTIVE

It has been proposed that cumulative stress, one's experience of chronic stressors across multiple domains, worsens health by altering the extent to which daily stressors impact daily affect and physical symptoms. Recent work confirms that high cumulative stress exacerbates the association between daily stressor exposure and increased daily negative affect, though it remains untested the extent to which cumulative stress and daily stressor exposure interact to predict daily symptoms.

METHOD

We employed data from the second wave of the midlife in the U.S. Survey (N = 2,022; Mage = 56.2; 57.2% female) to examine whether levels of cumulative stress compound daily symptoms on days with (vs. without) stressful events. Experiences of life stressors across eight domains, occurrence of daily stressors, and occurrence, number, and severity of daily physical symptoms were analyzed using multilevel modeling.

RESULTS

Greater cumulative stress and experiencing (vs. not experiencing) a daily stressor independently increased the odds of occurrence, number, and severity of daily symptoms (ps ≤ .016). Moreover, after adjusting for covariates (e.g., sociodemographic characteristics, chronic health conditions, percent of days with reported stressors, and health behaviors), the associations between daily stressor exposure and odds of occurrence, number, and severity of daily symptoms were potentiated as levels of cumulative stress increased (ps ≤ .009).

CONCLUSIONS

The negative implications of daily stressor exposure for daily health may be most pronounced in those who report higher levels of cumulative stress across multiple life domains and across time. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Daily Stressor Exposure and Daily Well-Being Among Sexual Minority and Heterosexual Adults in the United States: Results from the National Study of Daily Experiences (NSDE)

BACKGROUND

Daily stress plays a significant role in mental and physical health. Negative mood (e.g., hopelessness) and physical symptoms (e.g., headaches) are responses often associated with daily stressors. It is theorized that some people or populations are more vulnerable or reactive to daily stressors. We propose sexual orientation as one factor that is associated with daily stress exposure and reactivity.

PURPOSE

To understand whether sexual minorities (SMs) differ from heterosexuals in their exposure and reactivity to general, non-sexual minority-specific stressors (e.g., arguments/disagreements, job concerns).

METHODS

We used daily diary data (n = 3,323 heterosexuals [52% identified as female and 85% identified as White]; n = 98 SMs [50% identified as female and 93% identified as White]) from the National Study of Daily Experiences (NSDE). Participants completed eight consecutive evening daily diary interviews (n days = 24,773; mean days completed = 7.24) and reported daily stress exposure and daily well-being. We used multilevel modeling as an approach to examine whether sexual orientation interacted with daily stressors to predict daily negative affect and physical health.

RESULTS

SMs tended to experience more daily stressors compared to heterosexuals; specifically, SMs reported at least one stressor on nearly half (48%) of the study days they completed, and heterosexuals reported at least one stressor on about two-fifths (41%) of the study days they completed. SMs also tended to experience more negative mood when they experienced a daily stressor compared to heterosexuals when they experienced a daily stressor.

CONCLUSION

We emphasize the importance of SMs' exposure and reactivity to general daily stressors and the implications of our results for the day-to-day lives and health of SMs.

Self-Perceptions of Aging Moderate Associations of Within- and Between-Persons Perceived Stress and Physical Health Symptoms

OBJECTIVES

To examine how self-perceptions of aging (SPA) moderated within- and between-persons perceived stress associations with physical health symptoms.

METHODS

A community-dwelling sample of 103 adults (Meanage = 63, range = 52-88) participated in an online microlongitudinal study for 100 days (Noccasions = 7,064). Participants completed baseline surveys consisting of SPA, social connections, and demographics followed by 100 daily surveys including information about daily stress perceptions and physical health. Utilizing generalized multilevel models, we examined whether daily fluctuations and average levels of perceived stress over 100 days affected physical health symptoms and whether these associations varied by SPA.

RESULTS

Adults who had higher perceived stress, on average across 100 days, reported significantly more physical health symptoms compared to individuals with lower perceived stress on average (p < .05). On days when individuals reported higher perceived stress than their own average, they had a higher likelihood of reporting more physical health symptoms compared to days when their perceived stress was lower than their own average (p < .05). Further, SPA significantly moderated associations between both within- and between-persons perceived stress and physical health symptoms (ps < .05). Individuals with more positive SPA were less affected by high levels of perceived stress-both on average and on days when perceived stress was higher than their own average.

DISCUSSION

More positive SPA significantly dampened the impact of perceived stress, suggesting the importance of SPA as an individual characteristic within stress processes. Future work should examine how daily changes in SPA may exacerbate or mitigate the impacts of daily stress processes and health outcomes.

Social Media Use and Its Link to Physical Health Indicators

Social media use has become an integral part of many young adults' daily lives. Although much research has examined how social media use relates to psychological well-being, little is known about how it relates to physical health. To address this knowledge gap, the present research investigated how the amount of social media people use relates to various indices of physical health. Young adults provided a blood sample that was analyzed for C-reactive protein (CRP), a marker of chronic inflammation. They also completed self-report measures of social media use, somatic symptoms, illness-related physician or health center visits, and whether they sought medical care for infection-related illnesses in the last 3 months. Social media use was positively correlated with higher levels of CRP, more somatic symptoms, and more visits to the doctor or health centers for an illness. Although directionally consistent, the correlation with likelihood of seeking medical care for infection-related illnesses was nonsignificant (p = 0.061). All of these results held after controlling for factors such as sociodemographic information and depressive symptoms. Given the prevalence of social media use in daily life, these findings underscore the need for more research examining how social media use relates to physical health.

Day-to-day associations between nightly sleep and next-day well-being amid the COVID-19 pandemic in North America

OBJECTIVE

Sleep may be especially important for maintaining health and well-being in daily life amid the stress of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. This preregistered study examined the associations of sleep quality, duration, and efficiency with next-day physical symptoms, affect, and stressors during the COVID-19 pandemic in North America, in addition to evaluating individual differences in COVID-19 threat as a moderator.

METHOD

From mid-March to early August 2020, 1025 adults from Canada and the United States aged 18-91 reported COVID-19 threat at baseline and subsequently completed twice-daily diaries for one week about their sleep, negative affect, stressors, and physical symptoms.

RESULTS

Within-persons, nights with better-than-usual sleep quality predicted lower next-day negative affect, physical symptoms, and stressor occurrence. Better-than-usual sleep efficiency and longer-than-usual sleep duration also predicted lower next-day physical symptoms. COVID-19 threat ratings moderated several of these associations, such that individuals with higher COVID-19 threat showed weaker within-person associations of sleep duration and efficiency with next-day well-being, compared to individuals with lower-to-moderate levels of COVID-19 threat. For the reversed direction of association, stressor occurrence predicted shorter-than-usual sleep that night, but no other links between daily well-being and subsequent sleep were observed.

DISCUSSION

Sleep quality, efficiency, and duration were important predictors of daily health and well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic, but the protective associations between sleep and next-day well-being were attenuated among people with higher COVID-19 threat. These findings highlight the role of heightened stress contexts when considering the benefits of sleep on daily health and well-being.

The mixed benefits of a stressor-free life

Research documents the pernicious effects of daily stressors on well-being, but often ignored in these studies are people reporting no stressors. The current study compared adults who reported no daily stressors with adults who reported at least one stressor across 8 consecutive days on measures of well-being. Of the 2,804 respondents (age range = 25-75 years, M = 53.46) from the Midlife in the United State Survey daily diary study, 10% reported experiencing no stressors across 8 days. Those reporting no stressors were generally older, male, unmarried, and were less likely to work, provide or receive emotional support, or experience positive daily events. They reported greater daily affective well-being and fewer chronic health conditions but had lower levels of cognitive functioning. Findings suggest that daily stressors may serve as a proxy to engagement in social activities, where a lower level of engagement is related to better physical and emotional well-being but lower levels of cognitive functioning. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

Neighborhood safety concerns and daily well-being: A national diary study

People living in unsafe neighborhoods often report poor health. The reasons for this are multi-faceted, but one possibility is that unsafe neighborhoods create a situation of chronic stress, which may deplete people's resources to cope with the daily stressors of life. How people respond to daily stressors (e.g., with increased self-reported negative affect and physical symptoms) is positively associated with health problems and may thus be one pathway linking perceptions of neighborhood safety to poor health. The current study investigated the relationship between neighborhood safety concerns, daily stressors, affective well-being, and physical health symptoms in a national sample of adults from the Midlife in the United States Study II (n = 1748). In 2004, participants reported neighborhood safety concerns and history of chronic stress exposure. Across eight days, they also reported daily stressors, physical symptoms and negative affect. Greater neighborhood safety concerns were associated with higher negative affect and more physical symptoms, adjusting for other sources of chronic stress. Moreover, lower perceived neighborhood safety was related to greater increases in negative affect and physical symptoms on days during which stressors were reported, even after accounting for established interactions between daily stressors and other sources of chronic stress. Exposure to neighborhoods perceived as unsafe is associated with poorer daily well-being and exacerbated responses to daily stressors, which may serve as an individual-level pathway contributing to poorer health among people living in neighborhoods perceived as unsafe.

Purposefulness and daily life in a pandemic: Predicting daily affect and physical symptoms during the first weeks of the COVID-19 response

OBJECTIVE

Sense of purpose has been associated with greater health and well-being, even in daily contexts. However, it is unclear whether effects would hold in daily life during COVID-19, when people may have difficulty seeing a path towards their life goals.

DESIGN

The current study investigated whether purposefulness predicted daily positive affect, negative affect, and physical symptoms. Participants (n = 831) reported on these variables during the first weeks of the COVID-19 response in North America.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

Participants completed daily surveys asking them for daily positive events, stressors, positive affect, negative affect, physical symptoms, and purposefulness.

RESULTS

Purposefulness at between- and within-person levels predicted less negative affect and physical symptoms, but more positive affect at the daily level. Between-person purposefulness interacted with positive events when predicting negative and positive affect, suggesting that purposeful people may be less reactive to positive events. However, between-person purposefulness also interacted with daily stressors, insofar that stressors predicted greater declines in positive affect for purposeful people.

CONCLUSION

Being a purposeful person holds positive implications for daily health and well-being, even during the pandemic context. However, purposefulness may hold some consequences unique to the COVID-19 context, which merit attention in future research.

Conscientiousness and perceived physical symptoms: Mediating effect of life events stress and moderating role of resting respiratory sinus arrhythmia

This study investigated the possible psychophysiological links between conscientiousness and perceived physical symptoms by examining the mediating role of life events stress and the moderating role of resting respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA). Participants participated in the collection of questionnaire data and physiological data (N = 396). Results showed life events stress mediated the association between conscientiousness and perceived physical symptoms, and the indirect effect was only significant among individuals with lower resting RSA. Findings indicate that low resting RSA as a risk-amplifying physiological marker may magnify the relationship that low conscientiousness affects physical symptoms by increasing life events stress.

Work-family spillover stress predicts health outcomes across two decades

RATIONALE

Work is a common source of stress for many adults, arising from situations that occur at work (e.g., job demands) as well as the worries and responsibilities that people take home with them (negative work-family spillover). Over time, work-related stress may impact physical health.

OBJECTIVE

The current study prospectively examined the effects of job demands and negative work-family spillover (NWFS) on three self-reported physical health measures.

METHOD

Participants in the Midlife in the United States (MIDUS) survey (N = 4200) reported their job demands and negative work-family spillover at wave 1. They also reported on their health across three waves of data collection.

RESULTS

Higher levels of NWFS at baseline were related to a higher number of self-reported chronic illnesses, greater functional limitation, and poorer self-rated health approximately 10 and 20 years later. In contrast, job demands were unrelated to any health indices at baseline or at the approximately 10- and 20-year follow-ups.

CONCLUSIONS

Findings suggest that NWFS is a unique form of stress with long-lasting and detrimental effects on physical health.

Greater Daily Psychosocial Stress Exposure is Associated With Increased Norepinephrine-Induced Vasoconstriction in Young Adults

Background Epidemiological data suggest a link between psychological stress and increased cardiovascular disease risk; however, the underlying mechanisms remain incompletely understood. The purpose of this investigation was to directly examine the influence of daily psychosocial stress on microvascular adrenergic vasoconstrictor responsiveness in healthy adults. We hypothesized increased daily psychosocial stress would be positively related to increased norepinephrine-induced vasoconstriction. Methods and Results Eighteen healthy adults (19-36 years; 10 women) completed a daily psychosocial experiences telephone interview for 8 consecutive evenings in order to document their exposure and emotional responsiveness to common stressors (eg, arguments, work stress) over the preceding 24 hrs. On the last interview day, red cell flux (laser Doppler flowmetry) was measured during graded intradermal microdialysis perfusion of norepinephrine (10^-12 to 10^-2 mol/L) and expressed as a percentage of baseline vascular conductance. Exogenous norepinephrine elicited progressive and robust vasoconstriction in all individuals (maximal vasoconstriction: 71±4%_base; cumulative vasoconstriction [area under the curve]: 118±102 arbitrary units). Participants experienced a stressor on 51±5% of days and a total of 5.2±0.9 stressors over the 8-day time frame. Increased daily frequency of stressor exposure was positively related to both maximal (R²=0.26; P=0.03) and cumulative (R²=0.31; P=0.02) vasoconstrictor responsiveness. Likewise, the total number of stressors was associated with increased maximal (R²=0.40; P<0.01) and cumulative (R²=0.27; P=0.03) norepinephrine-induced vasoconstriction. Neither stressor severity nor stress-related emotions were related to vasoconstrictor responsiveness. Conclusions Collectively, these data suggest that daily psychosocial stressor exposure by itself is sufficient to adversely influence microvascular vasoconstrictor function, regardless of the perceived severity or emotional consequences of the stressor exposure.

Associations among parental and romantic attachment, personality disorder symptoms, and physical health

The relations of parental and romantic attachment with physical health symptoms and the mediating role of personality disorder symptoms in those relations were examined in an online survey of US young adults. Latent class analysis identified two groups: occasionally sick and healthier. Insecure attachment was related to being occasionally sick and to personality disorder symptoms (poor reality testing, primitive defenses, and diffused identity). Primitive defenses/identity diffusion mediated relations between insecure parental attachment and physical symptoms. Maternal and paternal attachment each provided unique information about these relations. Romantic attachment was not associated with physical symptoms after adjusting for parental attachment and personality disorder symptoms.

Life Course Socioeconomic Status, Daily Stressors, and Daily Well-Being: Examining Chain of Risk Models

Objectives

This article models the chain of risk that links life course socioeconomic status (SES), daily stressor exposure and severity, and daily well-being.

Method

Data from the main survey and the daily diary project of the Midlife in the United States (MIDUS) Refresher study were combined, resulting in 782 participants (55.6% female; age 25-74, Mage = 47.9) who reported on 5,849 days of information on daily stressors and daily well-being. Data were measured at both person and day levels. Between-person predictor variables include childhood SES, education, and adult SES. Within-person daily variables assessed exposure to daily stressors, severity of daily stressors, positive affect, negative affect, and daily physical symptoms. We contrasted hypothesized models, the chain of risk trigger effect model versus the additive model within a multilevel structural equation modeling framework.

Results

The influences of life course SES and daily stressor exposure and severity on daily well-being were better described by the chain of risk additive model than the chain of risk trigger effect model. Childhood SES was directly and indirectly (through education, adult SES, and daily stressor exposure and severity) associated with daily well-being (in between-person level), especially daily physical symptoms and daily negative affect.

Discussion

Childhood may be a sensitive period that has salient implications for day-to-day well-being later in life.

Resting respiratory sinus arrhythmia moderates the association between social phobia symptoms and self-reported physical symptoms

The present study sought to investigate the association between social phobia symptoms and self-reported physical symptoms and the moderation effect of resting respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) on this link. Data of 5-min resting RSA, social phobia symptoms assessed by the Social Phobia Scale, and physical symptoms assessed by the Cohen-Hoberman Inventory of Physical Symptoms were collected from 167 undergraduate students. Results indicated that higher levels of social phobia symptoms were associated with higher levels of self-reported physical symptoms. Resting RSA played the moderating role in the link between social phobia symptoms and self-reported physical symptoms, such that social phobia symptoms were positively associated with self-reported physical symptoms among individuals with low resting RSA, whereas this association was nonsignificant among individuals with high resting RSA. These findings suggest that high resting RSA as a physiological marker of better self-regulation capacity might buffer the effect of social phobia symptoms on physical health.

Associations of mindfulness with depressive symptoms and well-being in older adults: the moderating role of neuroticism

OBJECTIVE

To investigate whether observed interactions of mindfulness with the personality trait neuroticism extend to older adults and to aspects of psychological functioning other than depressive symptoms, and whether effects of mindfulness training in this population depend on levels of neuroticism.

METHOD

We performed a secondary analysis of data from a randomized controlled trial of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) for community-dwelling older adults. We investigated whether neuroticism moderates associations of dispositional mindfulness with various aspects of psychological and physical functioning at baseline, as well as effects of MBSR on these outcomes.

RESULTS

Significant two-way interactions showed that greater mindfulness was associated with fewer depressive symptoms and less negative affect at baseline in individuals with average or higher levels of neuroticism. In contrast, mindfulness was associated with greater positive affect and vitality and fewer physical symptoms regardless of the level of neuroticism. There were no effects of MBSR on these outcomes at any level of neuroticism.

CONCLUSION

Mindfulness may be more protective against psychological ill-being in older adults with higher levels of neuroticism, but conducive to positive psychological and physical well-being regardless of this personality trait. The potential moderating role of neuroticism should be further evaluated in studies of mindfulness-based interventions in older adults.

Sense of Purpose Moderates the Associations Between Daily Stressors and Daily Well-being

Background

Having a sense of purpose in life has been consistently demonstrated as a predictor of positive health outcomes, including less perceived stress, yet, little is known about the role of sense of purpose on stressful days.

Purpose

The current study investigated the sense of purpose as a moderator of stressor-related changes in daily physical symptoms, positive affect, and negative affect.

Methods

A subset of the Midlife in the United States study (n = 1949, mage: 56.4 years) reported their sense of purpose, along with up to eight daily assessments of stressors, affect, and physical symptoms. Multilevel models evaluated whether sense of purpose was associated with deviations in affect or physical symptom reporting on days when participants reported a stressor versus days when stressors did not occur.

Results

Sense of purpose was associated with higher daily positive affect, lower daily negative affect, and fewer daily physical symptoms. Compared with individuals who reported lower levels of purpose, those reporting higher levels encountered the same number of daily stressors, yet showed less of an increase in negative affect and physical symptoms on stressor days than on stressor-free days. Purpose did not predict changes in positive affect in response to daily stressors.

Conclusions

Findings provide evidence that a purposeful life may be characterized by lower negative affect and physical symptom reporting on stressful days.

A Study of the Effects of Daily Physical Activity on Memory and Attention Capacities in College Students

This study evaluated the relationship between daily physical activity (DPA) and memory capacity, as well as the association between daily activity and attention capacity, in college students in Taiwan. Participants (mean age = 20.79) wore wearable trackers for 106 days in order to collect DPA. These data were analyzed in association with their memory and attention capacities, as assessed using the spatial span test (SST) and the trail making test (TMT). The study showed significant negative correlations between memory capacity, time spent on the attention test (TSAT), calories burnt, and very active time duration (VATD) on the day before testing (r = −0.272, r = −0.176, r = 0.289, r = 0.254, resp.) and during the week prior to testing (r = −0.364, r = −0.395, r = 0.268, r = 0.241, resp.). The calories burnt and the VATD per day thresholds, which at best discriminated between normal-to-good and low attention capacity, were ≥2283 calories day⁻¹, ≥20 minutes day⁻¹ of very high activity (VHA) on the day before testing, or ≥13,640 calories week⁻¹, ≥76 minutes week⁻¹ of VHA during the week prior to testing. Findings indicated the short-term effects that VATD and calories burnt on the day before or during the week before testing significantly and negatively associated with memory and attention capacities of college students.

New or Worsening Symptoms and Signs in Community-Dwelling Persons with Dementia: Incidence and Relation to Use of Acute Medical Services

OBJECTIVES

To understand the range of symptoms that present to family caregivers of community-dwelling persons with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD).

DESIGN

Six-month longitudinal prospective study to identify the incidence of new or worsening symptoms and their association with acute care medical service use.

SETTING

Community-based sample of volunteers from multiple states.

PARTICIPANTS

A total of 136 patient-caregiver dyads with a range of dementia severity.

MEASUREMENTS

Forty four symptoms and signs common in older persons and/or persons with dementia; frequency of emergency department visits, hospitalizations, and death; and associations between reported symptoms and acute medical care.

RESULTS

During a mean of 5.7 months' follow-up, new or worsening organ-specific (90% of participants), nonspecific (89%), and behavioral (88%) symptoms were common, with the average caregiver reporting seven new or worsening symptoms. Most common were worsening confusion (74%), decreased activity (64%), agitation (57%), hallucinations/delusions (45%), voice and speaking problems (45%), not eating or drinking (44%), and stress/anxiety (41%). Hospitalization and emergency department use occurred respectively in 19% and 20% of participants, and were associated with organ-specific symptoms (OR 3.15, P = .02), less so with nonspecific symptoms (OR 2.27, P = .07), and very little with behavioral symptoms (OR 1.44, P = .38). Within each symptom category, certain symptoms were significantly associated with acute medical service use.

CONCLUSION

Family caregivers of persons with ADRD must respond to a variety of medical, nonspecific, and behavioral symptoms. The high incidence of new or worsening symptoms and of acute medical care use suggests a need to better target symptom evaluation and management in caregiver education.

Perceived weight discrimination, changes in health, and daily stressors

OBJECTIVE

To examine whether perceived weight discrimination is associated with change in health markers over time and whether it is associated with daily stressors, physical symptoms, and affect.

METHODS

Participants were selected from the Midlife in the United States (MIDUS) study if they had data on perceived weight discrimination and health markers at MIDUS II (2004-2006), health markers at MIDUS III (2013-2014), and a body mass index ≥25 kg/m(2) (N = 1,841). A subset of these participants (N = 1,153) reported on their experiences daily for 8 days as part of the second National Study of Daily Experiences.

RESULTS

Perceived weight discrimination was associated with declines in mental and physical health over time (median β = 0.06). Participants who reported weight discrimination experienced more daily stressors (β = 0.13), physical symptoms (β = 0.13), and negative affect (β = 0.13) and less positive affect (β = -0.12) over the 8 days of the second National Study of Daily Experiences. Weight discrimination was most strongly associated with interpersonal stressors (median β = 0.14), feelings of anger (β = 0.16) and frustration (β = 0.14), lower attention (β = -0.14) and activity (β = -0.16), and more nonspecific physical symptoms (e.g., fatigue; β = 0.10).

CONCLUSIONS

This research replicates the association between perceived weight discrimination and worse health over time and extends this literature to show that people who experience weight discrimination have more daily stressors, physical symptoms, and negative emotions.