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Chen Y. Childhood and adult socioeconomic status influence on late-life healthy longevity: evidence from the Chinese longitudinal healthy longevity survey. Front Public Health 2024; 12:1352937. [PMID: 39403433 PMCID: PMC11471603 DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2024.1352937] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/09/2023] [Accepted: 09/13/2024] [Indexed: 10/30/2024] Open
Abstract
Background Older people in low- and middle-income countries are more susceptible to the impact of childhood experiences. This study comprehensively examines how childhood socioeconomic status (SES) and adult SES collectively influence late-life healthy longevity from a life course perspective, providing insights for shaping health-related policies. Methods This study analyzed data from the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey (1998-2018) with 37,264 individuals aged 65 and above. Using R software, we applied continuous-time multi-state models incorporating the Rockwood frailty index with 38 indicators to assess participants' health. Childhood SES or life course SES trajectories were core explanatory variables, while age and gender were controlled. Multinomial regression estimated annual transition probabilities between different states, and the multi-state life table method calculated total and frailty-specific life expectancy (LE). Results (1) Social mobility among older people in China showed an upward trend from childhood to adulthood. (2) Transition probabilities for robust-frailty, robust-dead, and frailty-dead increased with age, while frailty-robust decreased. Transition probabilities and LE varied across different childhood SES (low, medium, high) or life-course SES trajectory categories (low-low, low-medium, low-high, medium-low, medium-medium, medium-high, high-low, high-medium, high-high), with probabilities of robust-frailty, robust-dead, and frailty-dead decreasing sequentially across different categories, and frailty-robust increasing sequentially across different categories. Total LE, robust LE, and robust LE proportion increased sequentially across different categories, while frailty LE decreased sequentially across different categories. (3) Women had higher total LE and frailty incidence, but lower recovery rate, mortality risk, robust LE, and robust LE proportion compared to men. Conclusion Favorable childhood SES and lifelong accumulation of SES advantages protect against frailty morbidity, improve recovery rate, reduce mortality risk, and increase total LE, robust LE, and robust LE proportion. High childhood SES has a stronger protective effect than high adult SES, indicating the lasting impact of childhood conditions on healthy longevity. Systematic interventions in education, food supply, and medical accessibility for children from impoverished families are crucial.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuanyan Chen
- School of Public Finance and Taxation, Capital University of Economics and Business, Beijing, China
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2
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Houweling TAJ, Grünberger I. Intergenerational transmission of health inequalities: towards a life course approach to socioeconomic inequalities in health - a review. J Epidemiol Community Health 2024; 78:641-649. [PMID: 38955463 PMCID: PMC11420752 DOI: 10.1136/jech-2022-220162] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2022] [Accepted: 04/19/2024] [Indexed: 07/04/2024]
Abstract
Adult health inequalities are a persistent public health problem. Explanations are usually sought in behaviours and environments in adulthood, despite evidence on the importance of early life conditions for life course outcomes. We review evidence from a broad range of fields to unravel to what extent, and how, socioeconomic health inequalities are intergenerationally transmitted.We find that transmission of socioeconomic and associated health (dis)advantages from parents to offspring, and its underlying structural determinants, contributes substantially to socioeconomic inequalities in adult health. In the first two decades of life-from conception to early adulthood-parental socioeconomic position (SEP) and parental health strongly influence offspring adult SEP and health. Socioeconomic and health (dis)advantages are largely transmitted through the same broad mechanisms. Socioeconomic inequalities in the fetal environment contribute to inequalities in fetal development and birth outcomes, with lifelong socioeconomic and health consequences. Inequalities in the postnatal environment-especially the psychosocial and learning environment, physical exposures and socialisation-result in inequalities in child and adolescent health, development and behavioural habits, with health and socioeconomic consequences tracking into adulthood. Structural factors shape these mechanisms in a socioeconomically patterned and time-specific and place-specific way, leading to distinct birth-cohort patterns in health inequality.Adult health inequalities are for an important part intergenerationally transmitted. Effective health inequality reduction requires addressing intergenerational transmission of (dis)advantage by creating societal circumstances that allow all children to develop to their full potential.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tanja A J Houweling
- Department of Public Health, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Ilona Grünberger
- Department of Public Health Sciences, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
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3
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Yahirun J, Torres J. Consequences of deferred action for childhood arrivals for parent health: Applying a social foreground perspective. JOURNAL OF MARRIAGE AND THE FAMILY 2024; 86:910-930. [PMID: 39035851 PMCID: PMC11257373 DOI: 10.1111/jomf.12986] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2023] [Accepted: 02/09/2024] [Indexed: 07/23/2024]
Abstract
Objective This study applies a social foreground perspective to assess whether the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program impacted the self-rated health of coresident parents of DACA-eligible individuals. Background DACA status grants a temporary work permit and allows for a stay of deportation for undocumented persons who entered the United States as children. Although research points to the positive health benefits of DACA for its recipients, less is known about whether the program affects the health of family members, including parents. Method This study uses data from the National Health Interview Study (2008-2015) on foreign-born adults and their coresident parents. We applied a difference-in-differences design to examine whether the self-rated health of coresident mothers and fathers changed following the passage of DACA for DACA-eligible individuals. Results In contrast to expectations, DACA was associated with worse self-rated health among coresident, partnered parents. These results may be because DACA also decreased the likelihood of coresiding with parents and changed the composition of coresident parents themselves. Following DACA, fewer eligible offspring lived with parents overall, but among those that did, parents tended to be older and less healthy. Conclusion Findings underscore how DACA may be used as a resource to support older parents experiencing health challenges, in particular among older undocumented immigrants, who make up a growing share of the undocumented population in the United States.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Jacqueline Torres
- Dept. of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California, San Francisco
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Lu Z, Tang G, Fortin S. Explaining child maltreatment and aggression among Chinese drug user: The mediating and moderating roles of drug craving and impulsivity. CHILD ABUSE & NEGLECT 2024; 154:106954. [PMID: 39059230 DOI: 10.1016/j.chiabu.2024.106954] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2024] [Revised: 06/13/2024] [Accepted: 07/17/2024] [Indexed: 07/28/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The cycle of violence highlights a strong correlation between child maltreatment and aggression. However, there remains a significant gap in the pathway models of the cycle of violence. Given the exceptionally high rates of child maltreatment and violent crime among Chinese drug users, it is essential to examine the mechanisms of the cycle of violence within this group. OBJECTIVE The current study incorporates drug craving and impulsivity into the child maltreatment-aggression mechanism. We explore the potential mediating and moderating roles of these variables and further examine the heterogeneity. PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING A total of 894 participants (Meanage = 38.30, SDage = 8.38) were recruited as the final sample. METHODS We employed moderated mediation and serial mediation models to explore the roles of drug craving and impulsivity. The Johnson-Neyman method was utilized to investigate moderating effects. Rich demographic variables and depression were controlled. RESULTS There was no direct relationship between child maltreatment and aggression. The moderated mediation model indicated that drug craving played a mediating role, and there was a substitutive relationship between impulsivity and drug craving. The serial mediation model showed that child maltreatment could only affect drug craving (not impulsivity) and could ultimately influence aggression through a chain relationship. Heterogeneity tests revealed that the mechanisms might differ among various types of maltreatment. CONCLUSION Drug craving holds a significant position in the cycle of violence. Compared to impulsivity, it is a more proximal factor to child mistreatment. Future research should also focus on the heterogeneity of child maltreatment for targeted interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zekai Lu
- Department of Sociology, McGill University, Montreal, Canada; Center for Brain and Cognitive Sciences, School of Education, Guangzhou University, Guangzhou, China.
| | - Ge Tang
- Teachers College, Columbia university, New York, USA
| | - Samuelle Fortin
- Department of Sociology, McGill University, Montreal, Canada
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5
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Upenieks L, Kent BV, Nagaswami M, Gu Y, Kanaya AM, Shields AE. Do Religion and Spirituality Buffer the Effect of Childhood Trauma on Depressive Symptoms? Examination of a South Asian Cohort from the USA. JOURNAL OF RELIGION AND HEALTH 2024; 63:2998-3026. [PMID: 38600425 DOI: 10.1007/s10943-024-02040-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 03/21/2024] [Indexed: 04/12/2024]
Abstract
Asian Americans have been identified as a racial group that is disproportionately affected by childhood trauma. The goal of this study was to assess if religion/spirituality moderate the effects of childhood trauma on adult depressive symptoms among a sample of South Asians in the USA. Our analysis drew from the study on stress, spirituality, and health (SSSH) questionnaire fielded in the Mediators of Atherosclerosis in South Asians Living in America (MASALA) study (n = 990) during 2016-2018. A series of regression models with multiplicative interaction terms were conducted. Emotional neglect, emotional abuse, and physical neglect were associated with higher depressive symptoms. Higher religious attendance and negative religious coping techniques were found to exacerbate this relationship. There were two findings conditional on gender. Among men, gratitude and positive religious coping also exacerbated the relationship between childhood trauma and depressive symptoms. Negative religious coping also exacerbated the association between childhood trauma and depressive symptoms for women. This is the first community-based study of US South Asians to consider the association between various forms of childhood trauma and depressive symptom outcomes. South Asians remain an understudied group in the religion and health literature, and this study sheds light on the important differences in the function and effectiveness of religion/spirituality for those faced with early life trauma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Upenieks
- Department of Sociology, Baylor University, One Bear Place #97326, Waco, TX, 76798, USA.
| | - Blake Victor Kent
- Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Westmont College, Santa Barbara, CA, USA
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Massachusetts General Hospital Center On Genomics, Vulnerable Populations, and Health Disparities, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Megha Nagaswami
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Yue Gu
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Massachusetts General Hospital Center On Genomics, Vulnerable Populations, and Health Disparities, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Alka M Kanaya
- School of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Alexandra E Shields
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Massachusetts General Hospital Center On Genomics, Vulnerable Populations, and Health Disparities, Boston, MA, USA
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Noghanibehambari H, Fletcher J. Unequal before death: The effect of paternal education on children's old-age mortality in the United States. POPULATION STUDIES 2024; 78:203-229. [PMID: 38445522 DOI: 10.1080/00324728.2023.2284766] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/01/2022] [Accepted: 06/12/2023] [Indexed: 03/07/2024]
Abstract
A growing body of research documents the relevance of parental education as a marker of family socio-economic status for children's later-life health outcomes. A strand of this literature evaluates how the early-life environment shapes mortality outcomes during infancy and childhood. However, the evidence on mortality during the life course and old age is limited. This paper contributes to the literature by analysing the association between paternal education and children's old-age mortality. We use data from Social Security Administration death records over the years 1988-2005 linked to the United States 1940 Census. Applying a family(cousin)- fixed-effects model to account for shared environment, childhood exposures, and common endowments that may confound the long-term links, we find that having a father with a college or high-school education, compared with elementary/no education, is associated with a 4.6- or 2.6-month-higher age at death, respectively, for the child, conditional on them surviving to age 47.
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Dore EC, Wurapa J. The long-term health effects of childhood exposure to social and economic policies: A scoping review. Soc Sci Med 2024; 352:117024. [PMID: 38824839 PMCID: PMC11239285 DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2024.117024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2024] [Revised: 05/16/2024] [Accepted: 05/27/2024] [Indexed: 06/04/2024]
Abstract
While numerous studies have found a relationship between social and economic policies and short-term health outcomes, fewer studies have explored the long-term health effects of these policies. Given the important association between childhood circumstances and health in adulthood, long-term population health consequences should be considered when designing social and economic policies. This review summarizes the existing literature on the long-term effects of childhood exposure to social and economic policies on adult health, summarizes the findings, the methods employed, and indicates areas for future research. The review process followed the JBI scoping review protocol and PRISMA-ScR reporting guidelines. The search was conducted in three electronic databases (Web of Science, Pub Med, and SCOPUS), and focused on peer-reviewed manuscripts that studied the effects of policy exposures during childhood on health in adulthood. A total of 3471 articles were collected from the databases and 18 were identified as meeting the eligibility criteria. The most commonly studied policies were safety-net policies (N = 6), followed by education policies (N = 5), civil rights policies (N = 3), government investments (N = 3), and child labor laws (N = 1). The health outcomes varied and included chronic conditions, mental health, mortality, and self-rated health. The studies also overwhelmingly employed causal inference techniques (N = 13), including difference-in-differences study designs and instrumental variable analysis. Most studies found long-term positive effects of policies that provided extra resources to historically under-resourced populations, or policies that aimed to increase equality of opportunity. However, there were some studies with null or mixed findings, especially when examining the long-term health effects of education reform. More literature is needed on this important topic, and now is the time to capitalize on longer follow-up periods in currently available data.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emily C Dore
- Emory University, Department of Sociology, 1555 Dickey Dr., Atlanta, GA, 30322, USA.
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Luo L, Wei L. For Whom Does Education Convey Health Benefits? A Two-Generation and Life Course Approach. JOURNAL OF HEALTH AND SOCIAL BEHAVIOR 2024:221465241249120. [PMID: 38832718 DOI: 10.1177/00221465241249120] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/05/2024]
Abstract
Scholars of social determinants of health have long been interested in how parent's and own education influence health. However, the differing effects of parent's and own education on health-that is, for what socioeconomic group education conveys health benefits-are relatively less studied. Using multilevel marginal structural models, we estimate the heterogeneous effects of parent's and own education over the life course on two health measures. Our analysis considers both parent's and respondent's pre-education covariates, such as childhood health and socioeconomic conditions. We find that the protective effects of college completion against negative health outcomes are remarkably similar regardless of parent's (measured by father's or mother's) education. Meanwhile, parent's education has a larger effect when the average educational level is low in the population. Our results also reveal distinct life course patterns between health measures. We conclude by discussing the implications of our study for understanding the education-health relationship.
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Affiliation(s)
- Liying Luo
- The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA
| | - Lai Wei
- University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
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9
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Farina MP, Klopack ET, Umberson D, Crimmins EM. The embodiment of parental death in early life through accelerated epigenetic aging: Implications for understanding how parental death before 18 shapes age-related health risk among older adults. SSM Popul Health 2024; 26:101648. [PMID: 38596364 PMCID: PMC11002886 DOI: 10.1016/j.ssmph.2024.101648] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2023] [Revised: 02/25/2024] [Accepted: 02/27/2024] [Indexed: 04/11/2024] Open
Abstract
Parental death in early life has been linked to various adverse health outcomes in older adulthood. This study extends prior research to evaluate how parental death in early life is tied to accelerated epigenetic aging, a potentially important biological mechanism from which social and environmental exposures impact age-related health. We used data from the 2016 Venous Blood Study (VBS), a component of the Health and Retirement Study (HRS), to examine the association between parental death in early life and accelerated epigenetic aging as measured by three widely used epigenetic clocks (PCPhenoAge, PCGrimAge, and DunedinPACE). We also assessed whether some of the association is explained by differences in educational attainment, depressive symptoms, and smoking behavior. Methods included a series of linear regression models and formal mediation analysis. Findings indicated that parental death in early life is associated with accelerated epigenetic aging for PCPhenoAge and DunedinPACE. The inclusion of educational attainment, depressive symptoms, and smoking behavior attenuated this association, with formal mediation analysis providing additional support for these observations. Parental death in early life may be one of the most difficult experiences an individual may face. The elevated biological risk associated with parental death in early life may operate through immediate changes but also through more downstream risk factors. This study highlights how early life adversity can set in motion biological changes that have lifelong consequences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mateo P. Farina
- Department of Human Development and Family Sciences, University of Texas at Austin, United States
- Population Research Center, University of Texas at Austin, United States
| | - Eric T. Klopack
- Davis School of Gerontology, University of Southern California, United States
| | - Debra Umberson
- Population Research Center, University of Texas at Austin, United States
- Department of Sociology, University of Texas at Austin, United States
| | - Eileen M. Crimmins
- Davis School of Gerontology, University of Southern California, United States
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Schlüter BS, Alburez-Gutierrez D, Bibbins-Domingo K, Alexander MJ, Kiang MV. Youth Experiencing Parental Death Due to Drug Poisoning and Firearm Violence in the US, 1999-2020. JAMA 2024; 331:1741-1747. [PMID: 38703404 PMCID: PMC11070062 DOI: 10.1001/jama.2024.8391] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/19/2024] [Accepted: 04/19/2024] [Indexed: 05/06/2024]
Abstract
Importance Youth (those aged <18 years) parental death has been associated with negative health outcomes. Understanding the burden of parental death due to drug poisoning (herein, drugs) and firearms is essential for informing interventions. Objective To estimate the incidence of youth parental death due to drugs, firearms, and all other causes. Design, Setting, and Participants This cross-sectional observational study was conducted using vital registration, including all US decedents, and census data from January 1990 through December 2020. Data were analyzed from May 30, 2023, to March 28, 2024. Exposures Parental death due to drug poisoning or firearms. Main Outcomes and Measures A demographic matrix projection model was used to estimate the number and incidence of youth experiencing parental death, defined as the death of 1 or more parents, per 1000 population aged less than 18 years. Analyses evaluated parental deaths by drugs, firearms, and all other causes from 1999 through 2020 by race and ethnicity. Results Between 1999 and 2020, there were 931 785 drug poisoning deaths and 736 779 firearm-related deaths with a mean (SD) age of 42.6 (16.3) years. Most deaths occurred among males (73.8%) and White decedents (70.8%) followed by Black (17.5%) and Hispanic (9.5%) decedents. An estimated 759 000 (95% CI, 722 000-800 000) youth experienced parental death due to drugs and an estimated 434 000 (95% CI, 409 000-460 000) youth experienced parental death due to firearms, accounting for 17% of all parental deaths. From 1999 to 2020, the estimated number of youth who experienced parental death increased 345% (95% CI, 334%-361%) due to drugs and 39% (95% CI, 37%-41%) due to firearms compared with 24% (95% CI, 23%-25%) due to all other causes. Black youth experienced a disproportionate burden of parental deaths, based primarily on firearm deaths among fathers. In 2020, drugs and firearms accounted for 23% of all parental deaths, double the proportion in 1999 (12%). Conclusions and Relevance Results of this modeling study suggest that US youth are at high and increasing risk of experiencing parental death by drugs or firearms. Efforts to stem this problem should prioritize averting drug overdoses and firearm violence, especially among structurally marginalized groups.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Diego Alburez-Gutierrez
- Kinship Inequalities Research Group, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany
| | - Kirsten Bibbins-Domingo
- Editor in Chief, JAMA and the JAMA Network, Chicago, Illinois
- Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California, San Francisco
| | - Monica J. Alexander
- Statistical Sciences, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Sociology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Mathew V. Kiang
- Epidemiology and Population Health, Stanford University, Stanford, California
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11
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Holuka C, Menta G, Caro JC, Vögele C, D'Ambrosio C, Turner JD. Developmental epigenomic effects of maternal financial problems. Dev Psychopathol 2024:1-14. [PMID: 38654405 DOI: 10.1017/s095457942400083x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/25/2024]
Abstract
Early-life adversity as neglect or low socioeconomic status is associated with negative physical/mental health outcomes and plays an important role in health trajectories through life. The early-life environment has been shown to be encoded as changes in epigenetic markers that are retained for many years.We investigated the effect of maternal major financial problems (MFP) and material deprivation (MD) on their children's epigenome in the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) cohort. Epigenetic aging, measured with epigenetic clocks, was weakly accelerated with increased MFP. In subsequent EWAS, MFP, and MD showed strong, independent programing effects on children's genomes. MFP in the period from birth to age seven was associated with genome-wide epigenetic modifications on children's genome visible at age 7 and partially remaining at age 15.These results support the hypothesis that physiological processes at least partially explain associations between early-life adversity and health problems later in life. Both maternal stressors (MFP/MD) had similar effects on biological pathways, providing preliminary evidence for the mechanisms underlying the effects of low socioeconomic status in early life and disease outcomes later in life. Understanding these associations is essential to explain disease susceptibility, overall life trajectories and the transition from health to disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cyrielle Holuka
- Department of Infection and Immunity, Immune Endocrine Epigenetics Research Group, Luxembourg Institute of Health, Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
- Faculty of Science, University of Luxembourg, Belval, Luxembourg
| | - Giorgia Menta
- Luxembourg Institute of Socio-Economic Research (LISER), Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
| | - Juan Carlos Caro
- Department of Behavioural and Cognitive Sciences, University of Luxembourg, Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
- Department of Industrial Engineering, Universidad de Concepcion, Talcahuano, Chile
| | - Claus Vögele
- Department of Behavioural and Cognitive Sciences, University of Luxembourg, Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
| | - Conchita D'Ambrosio
- Department of Behavioural and Cognitive Sciences, University of Luxembourg, Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
| | - Jonathan D Turner
- Department of Infection and Immunity, Immune Endocrine Epigenetics Research Group, Luxembourg Institute of Health, Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
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12
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Furuya S, Zheng F, Lu Q, Fletcher JM. Separating Scarring Effect and Selection of Early-Life Exposures With Genetic Data. Demography 2024; 61:363-392. [PMID: 38482998 DOI: 10.1215/00703370-11239766] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/05/2024]
Abstract
Causal life course research examining consequences of early-life exposures has largely relied on associations between early-life environments and later-life outcomes using exogenous environmental shocks. Nonetheless, even with (quasi-)randomized early-life exposures, these associations may reflect not only causation ("scarring") but also selection (i.e., which members are included in data assessing later life). Investigating this selection and its impacts on estimated effects of early-life conditions has, however, often been ignored because of a lack of pre-exposure data. This study proposes an approach for assessing and correcting selection, separately from scarring, using genetic measurements. Because genetic measurements are determined at the time of conception, any associations with early-life exposures should be interpreted as selection. Using data from the UK Biobank, we find that in utero exposure to a higher area-level infant mortality rate is associated with genetic predispositions correlated with better educational attainment and health. These findings point to the direction and magnitude of selection from this exposure. Corrections for this selection in examinations of effects of exposure on later educational attainment suggest underestimates of 26-74%; effects on other life course outcomes also vary across selection correction methods.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shiro Furuya
- Department of Sociology, Center for Demography of Health and Aging, and Center for Demography and Ecology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
| | - Fengyi Zheng
- Genetic Perturbation Platform, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Qiongshi Lu
- Center for Demography of Health and Aging, Department of Statistics, and Department of Biostatistics and Medical Informatics, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
| | - Jason M Fletcher
- Center for Demography of Health and Aging, Center for Demography and Ecology, La Follette School of Public Affairs, Department of Population Health Science, and Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
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13
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Lahti AM, Mikkola TM, Wasenius NS, Törmäkangas T, Ikonen JN, Siltanen S, Eriksson JG, von Bonsdorff MB. Social Mobility and Health-Related Quality of Life Trajectory Classes Among Older Women and Men. J Aging Health 2024:8982643241242513. [PMID: 38557403 DOI: 10.1177/08982643241242513] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/04/2024]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Changes in socioeconomic status (SES) during life may impact health in old age. We investigated whether social mobility and childhood and adulthood SES are associated with trajectories of health-related quality of life (HrQoL) over a 17-year period. METHODS We used data from the Helsinki Birth Cohort Study (n = 2003, 46% men, mean age 61.5 years). Social mobility was derived from childhood SES, obtained from healthcare records, and register-based adulthood SES. RESULTS Logistic regression models showed that lower adulthood SES was associated with lower physical HrQoL trajectories. Among men low (OR 3.95, p < .001), middle (OR 2.20, p = .006), and declining lifetime SES (OR 2.41, p = .001) were associated with lower physical HrQoL trajectories compared to men with high SES. Socioeconomic status was not associated with mental HrQoL trajectories. DISCUSSION Declining SES during life course may have negative health consequences, while improving SES is potentially as beneficial as high SES to later-life health among men.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna-Maria Lahti
- Gerontology Research Center and Faculty of Sport and Health Sciences, University of Jyväskylä, Jyvaskyla, Finland
- Folkhälsan Research Center, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Tuija M Mikkola
- Folkhälsan Research Center, Helsinki, Finland
- Clinicum, Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
- Population Health Unit, Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Niko S Wasenius
- Folkhälsan Research Center, Helsinki, Finland
- Department of General Practice and Primary Health Care, University of Helsinki and Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Timo Törmäkangas
- Gerontology Research Center and Faculty of Sport and Health Sciences, University of Jyväskylä, Jyvaskyla, Finland
| | - Jenni N Ikonen
- Folkhälsan Research Center, Helsinki, Finland
- Population Health Unit, Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare, Helsinki, Finland
- Department of General Practice and Primary Health Care, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Sini Siltanen
- Gerontology Research Center and Faculty of Sport and Health Sciences, University of Jyväskylä, Jyvaskyla, Finland
- Folkhälsan Research Center, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Johan G Eriksson
- Folkhälsan Research Center, Helsinki, Finland
- Department of General Practice and Primary Health Care, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology and Human Translational Research Programme, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
- Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences (SICS), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore, Singapore
| | - Mikaela B von Bonsdorff
- Gerontology Research Center and Faculty of Sport and Health Sciences, University of Jyväskylä, Jyvaskyla, Finland
- Folkhälsan Research Center, Helsinki, Finland
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14
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Risso PA, Jural LA, Santos IC, Cunha AJLA. Prevalence and associated factors of adverse childhood experiences (ACE) in a sample of Brazilian university students. CHILD ABUSE & NEGLECT 2024; 150:106030. [PMID: 36681583 DOI: 10.1016/j.chiabu.2023.106030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/18/2022] [Revised: 12/17/2022] [Accepted: 01/05/2023] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) have long been associated with health risk behaviors, but they are poorly studied in Brazilian university students. OBJECTIVE To estimate the prevalence of ACEs and investigate their association with sociodemographic data, health risk factors and self-related health in a sample of university students. PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING A cross-sectional study conducted with 546 students from a Brazilian public university. METHOD The self-reported 10-ACE Study questionnaire (ACE-Q) and sociodemographic information (age, sex, family income), health risk factors (body mass index, physical exercise, alcohol and tobacco use) and self-related health were assessed. Chi-square Test and multivariate logistic regression were used to evaluate the association between the cumulative occurrence of ACE (ACE ≥4) and the studied factors. RESULTS Of the 546 participants, 464 responded to all ACE-Q questions; 74.4% reported at least one ACE, and 13.1 % reported four or more. Lower family income (OR = 2.02; 95%CI = 1.13-3.61; p = 0.01) and self-related poor health (OR = 2.29; 95%CI = 1.28-4.08; p = 0.00) were associated with the occurrence of ACE ≥4. CONCLUSION Most students reported at least one ACE, while a minority reported ≥4 ACEs associated with lower family income and poor self-health. The data suggest that preventive actions should be considered to mitigate the problem, with lower-income students being treated as a priority.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrícia A Risso
- Laboratório Multidisciplinar de Pesquisa em Epidemiologia e Saúde (LAMPES), Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Av. Carlos Chagas Filho, 373 - K - 2° floor, 21 - Cidade Universitária, Rio de Janeiro 21044-020, Brazil.
| | - Lucas A Jural
- Laboratório Multidisciplinar de Pesquisa em Epidemiologia e Saúde (LAMPES), Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Av. Carlos Chagas Filho, 373 - K - 2° floor, 21 - Cidade Universitária, Rio de Janeiro 21044-020, Brazil
| | - Ismê C Santos
- Laboratório Multidisciplinar de Pesquisa em Epidemiologia e Saúde (LAMPES), Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Av. Carlos Chagas Filho, 373 - K - 2° floor, 21 - Cidade Universitária, Rio de Janeiro 21044-020, Brazil
| | - Antonio J L A Cunha
- Laboratório Multidisciplinar de Pesquisa em Epidemiologia e Saúde (LAMPES), Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Av. Carlos Chagas Filho, 373 - K - 2° floor, 21 - Cidade Universitária, Rio de Janeiro 21044-020, Brazil
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15
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Raffington L. Utilizing epigenetics to study the shared nature of development and biological aging across the lifespan. NPJ SCIENCE OF LEARNING 2024; 9:24. [PMID: 38509146 PMCID: PMC10954727 DOI: 10.1038/s41539-024-00239-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2023] [Accepted: 03/13/2024] [Indexed: 03/22/2024]
Abstract
Recently, biological aging has been quantified in DNA-methylation samples of older adults and applied as so-called "methylation profile scores" (MPSs) in separate target samples, including samples of children. This nascent research indicates that (1) biological aging can be quantified early in the life course, decades before the onset of aging-related disease, (2) is affected by common environmental predictors of childhood development, and (3) shows overlap with "developmental processes" (e.g., puberty). Because the MPSs were computed using algorithms developed in adults, these studies indicate a molecular link between childhood environments, development, and adult biological aging. Yet, if MPSs can be used to connect development and aging, previous research has only traveled one way, deriving MPSs developed in adults and applying them to samples of children. Researchers have not yet quantified epigenetic measures that reflect the pace of child development, and tested whether resulting MPSs are associated with physical and psychological aging. In this perspective I posit that combining measures of biological aging with new quantifications of child development has the power to address fundamental questions about life span: How are development and experience in childhood related to biological aging in adulthood? And what is aging?
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Affiliation(s)
- Laurel Raffington
- Max Planck Research Group Biosocial-Biology, Social Disparities, and Development, Max Planck Institute for Human Development, Lentzeallee 94, 14195, Berlin, Germany.
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16
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Duchowny KA, Marcinek DJ, Mau T, Diaz-Ramierz LG, Lui LY, Toledo FGS, Cawthon PM, Hepple RT, Kramer PA, Newman AB, Kritchevsky SB, Cummings SR, Coen PM, Molina AJA. Childhood adverse life events and skeletal muscle mitochondrial function. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2024; 10:eadj6411. [PMID: 38446898 PMCID: PMC10917337 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adj6411] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2023] [Accepted: 02/01/2024] [Indexed: 03/08/2024]
Abstract
Social stress experienced in childhood is associated with adverse health later in life. Mitochondrial function has been implicated as a mechanism for how stressful life events "get under the skin" to influence physical well-being. Using data from the Study of Muscle, Mobility, and Aging (n = 879, 59% women), linear models examined whether adverse childhood events (i.e., physical abuse) were associated with two measures of skeletal muscle mitochondrial energetics in older adults: (i) maximal adenosine triphosphate production (ATPmax) and (ii) maximal state 3 respiration (Max OXPHOS). Forty-five percent of the sample reported experiencing one or more adverse childhood events. After adjustment, each additional event was associated with -0.08 SD (95% confidence interval = -0.13, -0.02) lower ATPmax. No association was observed with Max OXPHOS. Adverse childhood events are associated with lower ATP production in later life. Findings indicate that mitochondrial function may be a mechanism for understanding how early social stress influences health in later life.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kate A. Duchowny
- Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | | | - Theresa Mau
- California Pacific Medical Center Research Institute, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - L. Grisell Diaz-Ramierz
- Division of Geriatrics, Department of Medicine, UCSF School of Medicine, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Li-Yung Lui
- California Pacific Medical Center Research Institute, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Frederico G. S. Toledo
- Department of Medicine, Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Peggy M. Cawthon
- California Pacific Medical Center Research Institute, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Russell T. Hepple
- Department of Physical Therapy, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Philip A. Kramer
- Department of Internal Medicine-Gerontology and Geriatric Medicine, Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC, USA
| | - Anne B. Newman
- Department of Epidemiology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Stephen B. Kritchevsky
- Department of Internal Medicine-Gerontology and Geriatric Medicine, Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC, USA
| | - Steven R. Cummings
- California Pacific Medical Center Research Institute, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Paul M. Coen
- AdventHealth, Translational Research Institute, Orlando, FL, USA
| | - Anthony J. A. Molina
- Department of Medicine-Division of Geriatrics, Gerontology, and Palliative Care, University of California San Diego School of Medicine, La Jolla, CA, USA
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17
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Noghanibehambari H, Fletcher J, Schmitz L, Duque V, Gawai V. Early-Life Economic Conditions and Old-Age Male Mortality: Evidence from Historical County-Level Bank Deposit Data. JOURNAL OF POPULATION ECONOMICS 2024; 37:32. [PMID: 39301052 PMCID: PMC11411638 DOI: 10.1007/s00148-024-01007-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/20/2023] [Accepted: 02/01/2024] [Indexed: 09/22/2024]
Abstract
This paper studies the long-run mortality effects of in-utero and early-life economic conditions. We examine how local economic conditions experienced during the Great Depression, proxied by county-level banking deposits during in-utero and first years of life, influence old-age longevity. We find that a one-standard-deviation rise in per capita bank deposits is associated with an approximately 1.7 month increase in males' longevity at old age. Additional analyses comparing state-level versus county-level economic measures provide insight on the importance of controlling for local-level confounders and exploiting more granular measures when exploring the relationship between early-life conditions and later-life mortality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hamid Noghanibehambari
- College of Business, Austin Peay State University, Marion St, Clarksville, TN 37040, USA
| | - Jason Fletcher
- La Follette School of Public Affairs, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1225 Observatory Drive, Madison, WI 53706-1211, USA
| | - Lauren Schmitz
- La Follette School of Public Affairs, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1225 Observatory Drive, Madison, WI 53706-1211, USA
| | - Valentina Duque
- Department of Economics, University of Sydney, FASS Building A02, Room 564 University of Sydney, NSW, 2006, Australia
| | - Vikas Gawai
- Department of Agricultural & Applied Economics, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 305 Taylor Hall, 427 Larch St., Madison, WI 53706, USA
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18
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Fletcher J, Noghanibehambari H. The effects of education on mortality: Evidence using college expansions. HEALTH ECONOMICS 2024; 33:541-575. [PMID: 38093403 PMCID: PMC10900482 DOI: 10.1002/hec.4787] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2023] [Revised: 11/22/2023] [Accepted: 11/28/2023] [Indexed: 02/03/2024]
Abstract
This paper explores the long-run health benefits of education for longevity. Using mortality data from the Social Security Administration (1988-2005) linked to geographic locations in the 1940-census data, we exploit changes in college availability across cohorts in local areas. Our treatment on the treated calculations suggest increases in longevity between 1.3 and 2.7 years. Some further analyses suggest the results are not driven by pre-tends, endogenous migration, and other time-varying local confounders. This paper adds to the literature on the health and social benefits of education.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jason Fletcher
- La Follette School of Public Affairs, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA
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19
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Siegel M, Nicholson-Robinson V. Association Between Changes in Racial Residential and School Segregation and Trends in Racial Health Disparities, 2000-2020: A Life Course Perspective. J Racial Ethn Health Disparities 2024:10.1007/s40615-024-01960-y. [PMID: 38421509 DOI: 10.1007/s40615-024-01960-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/13/2023] [Revised: 02/15/2024] [Accepted: 02/21/2024] [Indexed: 03/02/2024]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Most studies of the relationship between racial segregation and racial health disparities have focused on residential segregation. School-based racial segregation is an additional form of segregation that may be associated with racial disparities in health. This study examines the relationship between both residential segregation and school segregation and racial health disparities among non-Hispanic Black compared to non-Hispanic White persons at the county level in the United States. It also examines the relationship between changes in residential and school segregation and subsequent trajectories in a variety of racial health disparities across the life course. METHODS Using the CDC WONDER Multiple Case of Death database, we derived an annual estimate of race-specific death rates and rate ratios for each county during the period 2000-2020. We then examined the relationship between baseline levels of residential and school segregation in 1991 as well as changes between 1991-2000 and the trajectories of the observed racial health disparities between 2000 and 2020. We used latent trajectory analysis to identify counties with similar patterns of residential and school segregation over time and to identify counties with similar trajectories in each racial health disparity. Outcomes included life expectancy, early mortality (prior to age 65), infant mortality, firearm homicide, total homicide, and teenage pregnancy rates. RESULTS During the period 1991-2020, racial residential segregation remained essentially unchanged among the 1051 counties in our sample; however, racial school segregation increased during this period. Increases in school segregation from 1991 to 2000 were associated with higher racial disparities in each of the health outcomes during the period 2000-2020 and with less progress in reducing these disparities. CONCLUSION This paper provides new evidence that school segregation is an independent predictor of racial health disparities and that reducing school segregation-even in the face of high residential segregation-could have a long-term impact on reducing racial health disparities. Furthermore, it suggests that the health consequences of residential segregation have not been eliminated from our society but are now being exacerbated by a new factor: school-based segregation. Throughout this paper, changes in school-based segregation not only show up as a consistent significant predictor of greater racial disparities throughout the life course, but at times, an even stronger predictor of health inequity than residential segregation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael Siegel
- Department of Public Health and Community Medicine, Tufts University School of Medicine, 136 Harrison Avenue, Boston, MA, 02111, USA.
| | - Vanessa Nicholson-Robinson
- Department of Public Health and Community Medicine, Tufts University School of Medicine, 136 Harrison Avenue, Boston, MA, 02111, USA
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20
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Schafer MH, Upenieks L. On religious ambiguity: Childhood family religiosity and adult flourishing in a twin sample. SOCIAL SCIENCE RESEARCH 2024; 118:102949. [PMID: 38336416 DOI: 10.1016/j.ssresearch.2023.102949] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2023] [Revised: 09/05/2023] [Accepted: 11/05/2023] [Indexed: 02/12/2024]
Abstract
Ambiguity is an important notion in sociology, denoting situations where social actors and groups carry on without shared meaning. The current article applies this concept to the context of religiosity during people's upbringing, recognizing that multiple factors make family-level religion a complex experience. Indeed, though recent research portrays household religiosity in childhood as a sociocultural exposure with long-term implications for well-being, existing studies have yet to incorporate multiple inputs to consider the cohesiveness of that exposure. Using twin data from a national sample, we investigate whether consistency in recalled household religiosity is associated with mid-life flourishing. Multi-level linear regression models reveal that similarity in twin reports matter, above and beyond the actual level of religiosity individuals report and net of dis/similarity across other childhood recollections. We conclude that coherence in religious upbringing-whether religion was understood to be important or not-is a key ingredient for thriving later in life and then reflect more broadly on manifestations of sociocultural ambiguity in families and in larger social units.
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21
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Fletcher J, Noghanibehambari H. The Siren Song of Cicadas: Early-Life Pesticide Exposure and Later-Life Male Mortality. JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL ECONOMICS AND MANAGEMENT 2024; 123:102903. [PMID: 38222798 PMCID: PMC10785703 DOI: 10.1016/j.jeem.2023.102903] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/16/2024]
Abstract
This paper studies the long-term effects of in-utero and early-life exposure to pesticide use on adulthood and old-age longevity. We use the cyclical emergence of cicadas in the eastern half of the United States as a shock that raises the pesticide use among tree crop growing farmlands. We implement a difference-in-difference framework and employ Social Security Administration death records over the years 1975-2005 linked to the complete count 1940 census. We find that males born in top-quartile tree-crop counties and exposed to a cicada event during fetal development and early-life live roughly 2.2 months shorted lives; those with direct farm exposure face a reduction of nearly a year. We provide empirical evidence to examine mortality selection before adulthood, endogenous fertility, and differential data linkage rates. Additional analyses suggests that reductions in education and income during adulthood are potential mechanisms of impact. Our findings add to our understanding of the relevance of early-life insults for old-age health and mortality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jason Fletcher
- La Follette School of Public Affairs, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1225 Observatory Drive, Madison, WI 53706-1211, USA
| | - Hamid Noghanibehambari
- College of Business, Austin Peay State University, Marion St, Clarksville, TN 37040, USA
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22
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Henriques A, Ruano L, Fraga S, Soares S, Barros H, Talih M. Life-course socio-economic status and its impact on functional health of Portuguese older adults. J Biosoc Sci 2024; 56:36-49. [PMID: 37309019 DOI: 10.1017/s0021932023000093] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Functional health is arguably one of the most important health indicators for older adults, because it assesses physical, cognitive and social functions in combination. However, life-course circumstances may impact this multidimensional construct. The aim of the present study was to assess the relationship between life-course socio-economic status (SES) and different dimensions of functional health in older adults. Data on 821 Portuguese adults aged 50 years and over in 2013-2015 were analysed. Life-course SES was computed using participants' paternal occupation (non-manual (nm); manual (m)) and own occupation (nm; m), resulting in four patterns: stable high (nm + nm), upward (m + nm), downward (nm + m) and stable low (m + m). Functional health included physical and mental functioning, cognitive function, handgrip strength, and walking speed. Linear (beta coefficients) and logistic regressions (odds ratios) were used to estimate the association between life-course SES and functional health.Overall, those who accumulated social disadvantage during life-course presented worse functional health than those with stable high SES (stable low - SF-36 physical functioning: β = -9.75; 95% CI: -14.34; -5.15; SF-36 mental health: β = -7.33; 95% CI: -11.55; -3.11; handgrip strength: β = -1.60; 95% CI: -2.86; -0.35; walking time, highest tertile: OR = 5.28; 95% CI: 3.07; 9.09). Those with an upward SES were not statistically different from those in the stable high SES for most of the health outcomes; however, those with an upward SES trajectory tended to have higher odds of cognitive impairment (OR = 1.75; 95% CI: 0.96; 3.19). A downward SES trajectory increased the odds of slower walking speed (OR = 4.62; 95% CI: 1.78; 11.95). A disadvantaged life-course SES impacts older adults' physical and mental functioning. For some outcomes, this was attenuated by a favourable adulthood SES but those with a stable low SES consistently presented worse functional health.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Henriques
- EPIUnit - Instituto de Saúde Pública, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
- Laboratório para a Investigação Integrativa e Translacional em Saúde Populacional (ITR), Porto, Portugal
- Departamento de Ciências da Saúde Pública e Forenses e Educação Médica, Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
| | - L Ruano
- EPIUnit - Instituto de Saúde Pública, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
- Laboratório para a Investigação Integrativa e Translacional em Saúde Populacional (ITR), Porto, Portugal
- Departamento de Ciências da Saúde Pública e Forenses e Educação Médica, Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
- Serviço de Neurologia, Centro Hospitalar de Entre Douro e Vouga, Santa Maria da Feira, Portugal
| | - S Fraga
- EPIUnit - Instituto de Saúde Pública, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
- Laboratório para a Investigação Integrativa e Translacional em Saúde Populacional (ITR), Porto, Portugal
- Departamento de Ciências da Saúde Pública e Forenses e Educação Médica, Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
| | - S Soares
- EPIUnit - Instituto de Saúde Pública, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
- Laboratório para a Investigação Integrativa e Translacional em Saúde Populacional (ITR), Porto, Portugal
| | - H Barros
- EPIUnit - Instituto de Saúde Pública, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
- Laboratório para a Investigação Integrativa e Translacional em Saúde Populacional (ITR), Porto, Portugal
- Departamento de Ciências da Saúde Pública e Forenses e Educação Médica, Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
| | - M Talih
- EPIUnit - Instituto de Saúde Pública, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
- Laboratório para a Investigação Integrativa e Translacional em Saúde Populacional (ITR), Porto, Portugal
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McDade TW. Three common assumptions about inflammation, aging, and health that are probably wrong. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2023; 120:e2317232120. [PMID: 38064531 PMCID: PMC10740363 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2317232120] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2023] [Accepted: 11/02/2023] [Indexed: 12/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Chronic inflammation contributes to the onset and progression of cardiovascular disease and other degenerative diseases of aging. But does it have to? This article considers the associations among inflammation, aging, and health through the lens of human population biology and suggests that chronic inflammation is not a normal nor inevitable component of aging. It is commonly assumed that conclusions drawn from research in affluent, industrialized countries can be applied globally; that aging processes leading to morbidity and mortality begin in middle age; and that inflammation is pathological. These foundational assumptions have shifted focus away from inflammation as a beneficial response to infection or injury and toward an understanding of inflammation as chronic, dysregulated, and dangerous. Findings from community-based studies around the world-many conducted in areas with relatively high burdens of infectious disease-challenge these assumptions by documenting substantial variation in levels of inflammation and patterns of association with disease. They also indicate that nutritional, microbial, and psychosocial environments in infancy and childhood play important roles in shaping inflammatory phenotypes and their contributions to diseases of aging. A comparative, developmental, and ecological approach has the potential to generate novel insights into the regulation of inflammation and how it relates to human health over the life course.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas W. McDade
- Department of Anthropology, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL60208
- Institute for Policy Research, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL60208
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24
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Yang S, Wang Y, Lu Y, Zhang H, Wang F, Liu Z. Long-term effects of the left-behind experience on health and its mechanisms: Empirical evidence from China. Soc Sci Med 2023; 338:116315. [PMID: 37952432 DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2023.116315] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/10/2023] [Revised: 09/24/2023] [Accepted: 10/07/2023] [Indexed: 11/14/2023]
Abstract
Previous studies have primarily focused on the contemporaneous, short-term and medium-term effects of the childhood left-behind experience on subsequent health, but ignored its long-term effects and the mediating mechanisms of health outcomes. Using nationally representative data from the 2018 China Labor-force Dynamic Survey, this study uses self-rated health as a measure of health outcomes to examine the long-term effects of the left-behind experience and elucidate the underlying mechanisms that contribute to health inequality from a life-course perspective. The results show: (1) the childhood left-behind experience exerts a long-term negative impact on self-rated health in adulthood, and this impact persists and does not fade over time after ending the left-behind status; (2) the influence of the childhood left-behind experience on self-rated health demonstrates a cumulative disadvantage effect, with longer duration of being left-behind resulting in greater negative impacts; additionally, there's a critical window effect, with earlier left-behind experience leading to more significant negative outcomes; (3) the experience of being left behind during childhood has a negative impact and threshold effect on social trust in adulthood, meaning that the left-behind experience negatively affects social trust, but the duration of being left behind doesn't exacerbate this reduction; and (4) social trust is a key mediating factor between left-behind experiences and health, explaining 8.70% of this effect, and explaining 12.15% and 7.71% of mediation effects for adults with left-behind experience in middle and primary school stages, respectively.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shuai Yang
- Department of Sociology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China.
| | - Yan Wang
- Department of Sociology and Culturology, Zhejiang Institute of Adminstration, China.
| | - Yuan Lu
- Department of Sociology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China.
| | - Hanhan Zhang
- School of Sociology and Population Studies, Renmin University of China, Beijing, China.
| | - Feng Wang
- Department of Health Management and Policy, School of Public Health, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou, China.
| | - Zhijun Liu
- Department of Sociology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China; Social Survey and Research Center, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China.
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Noghanibehambari H, Fletcher J. Long-Term Health Benefits of Occupational Licensing: Evidence from Midwifery Laws. JOURNAL OF HEALTH ECONOMICS 2023; 92:102807. [PMID: 37722296 PMCID: PMC10841694 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhealeco.2023.102807] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/23/2023] [Revised: 08/19/2023] [Accepted: 09/03/2023] [Indexed: 09/20/2023]
Abstract
During the late 19th and early 20th century, several states mandated midwifery licensing requirements to improve midwives' knowledge, education, and quality. Previous studies point to the health benefits of midwifery quality improvements for maternal and infant health outcomes. This paper exploits the staggered adoption of midwifery laws across states using event-study and difference-in-difference frameworks. We use the universe of death records in the US over the years 1979-2020 and find that exposure to a midwifery licensing law at birth is associated with a 2.5 percent reduction in cumulative mortality rates and an increase of 0.6 months in longevity during adulthood and old age. The effects are concentrated on deaths due to infectious diseases, neoplasm diseases, and suicide mortality. We also show that the impacts are confined among blacks and are slightly larger among males. Additional analyses using alternative data sources suggest small but significant increases in educational attainments, income, measures of socioeconomic status, employment, and measures of height as potential mechanism channels. We provide a discussion on the economic magnitude and policy implication of the results.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hamid Noghanibehambari
- College of Business, Austin Peay State University, Marion St, Clarksville, TN 37040, USA.
| | - Jason Fletcher
- La Follette School of Public Affairs, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1225 Observatory Drive, Madison, WI 53706-1211, USA.
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Lange EC, Griffin M, Fogel AS, Archie EA, Tung J, Alberts SC. Environmental, sex-specific and genetic determinants of infant social behaviour in a wild primate. Proc Biol Sci 2023; 290:20231597. [PMID: 37964524 PMCID: PMC10646456 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2023.1597] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/14/2022] [Accepted: 10/23/2023] [Indexed: 11/16/2023] Open
Abstract
Affiliative social bonds are linked to fitness components in many social mammals. However, despite their importance, little is known about how the tendency to form social bonds develops in young animals, or if the timing of development is heritable and thus can evolve. Using four decades of longitudinal observational data from a wild baboon population, we assessed the environmental determinants of an important social developmental milestone in baboons-the age at which a young animal first grooms a conspecific-and we assessed how the rates at which offspring groom their mothers develops during the juvenile period. We found that grooming development differs between the sexes: female infants groom at an earlier age and reach equal rates of grooming with their mother earlier than males. We also found that age at first grooming for both sexes is weakly heritable (h2 = 0.043, 95% CI: 0.002-0.110). These results show that sex differences in grooming emerge at a young age; that strong, equitable social relationships between mothers and daughters begin very early in life; and that age at first grooming is heritable and therefore can be shaped by natural selection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elizabeth C. Lange
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
- Department of Biological Sciences, SUNY Oswego, Oswego, NY, USA
| | | | - Arielle S. Fogel
- University Program in Genetics and Genomics, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
- Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - Elizabeth A. Archie
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, USA
| | - Jenny Tung
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
- Population Research Institute, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
- Department of Primate Behavior and Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Susan C. Alberts
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
- Population Research Institute, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
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Thomeer MB, Reczek R, Ross C, Bijou C. Sequencing of Births by Wantedness: Implications for Changes in Mid-Life Health Among Aging NLSY79 Women. J Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci 2023; 78:1881-1891. [PMID: 37526336 PMCID: PMC10645314 DOI: 10.1093/geronb/gbad108] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/14/2023] [Indexed: 08/02/2023] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVES As life course frameworks highlight and gerontological studies confirm, the health implications of early birth timing (e.g., adolescent births) and unplanned births (e.g., unwanted or mistimed births) extend years after those births into mid and later life. Yet past research often overlooks the considerable diversity in sequencing and timing of unplanned births even within the same individual (e.g., having both wanted and unwanted births), which are likely fundamental for women's long-term health trajectories. We develop a holistic understanding of birth timing and wantedness to provide insight into when and how childbearing histories matter for aging women's health. METHODS We use sequence analysis with hierarchical cluster method and estimate regression models using the 1979 National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (N = 3,231) to examine how timing and patterning of births by wantedness are associated with changes in physical and mental health from ages 40 to 50. RESULTS We identify 7 clusters of childbearing sequences. Of those 7 clusters, respondents with sequences characterized by wanted births in their 20s and 30s had the smallest declines in health in mid-life, whereas respondents with sequences with mainly unwanted births at any age or with mainly mistimed births beginning in adolescence had the greatest health declines. Adjusting for social and economic variables accounted for some, but not all, health differences across childbearing clusters. DISCUSSION This project demonstrates the need for comprehensive life course perspectives on long-term health implications of birth wantedness and timing, recognizing diversity within and between individuals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mieke Beth Thomeer
- Department of Sociology, The University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, USA
| | - Rin Reczek
- Department of Sociology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA
- Institute for Population Research, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA
| | - Clifford Ross
- Department of Sociology, The University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, USA
| | - Christina Bijou
- Department of Sociology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA
- Institute for Population Research, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA
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Duchowny KA, Mau T, Diaz-Ramierz LG, Lui LY, Marcinek DJ, Toledo FGS, Cawthon PM, Hepple RT, Kramer PA, Newman AB, Kritchevsky SB, Cummings SR, Coen PM, Molina AJA. Childhood adverse life events and skeletal muscle mitochondrial function. MEDRXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR HEALTH SCIENCES 2023:2023.11.07.23298177. [PMID: 37986889 PMCID: PMC10659458 DOI: 10.1101/2023.11.07.23298177] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2023]
Abstract
Social stress experienced in childhood is associated with adverse health later in life. Mitochondrial function has been implicated as a mechanism for how stressful life events "get under the skin" to influence physical wellbeing. Using data from the Study of Muscle, Mobility and Aging (n=879, 59% women), linear models examined whether adverse childhood events (i.e., physical abuse) were associated with two measures of skeletal muscle mitochondrial energetics in older adults: (1) maximal adenosine triphosphate production (ATP max ) and (2) maximal state 3 respiration (Max OXPHOS). Forty-five percent of the sample reported experiencing 1+ adverse childhood event. After adjustment, each additional event was associated with -0.07 SD (95% CI= - 0.12, -0.01) lower ATP max . No association was observed with Max OXPHOS. Adverse childhood events are associated with lower ATP production in later life. Findings indicate that mitochondrial function may be a mechanism in understanding how early social stress influences health in later life.
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deSteiguer AJ, Raffington L, Sabhlok A, Tanksley P, Tucker-Drob EM, Harden KP. Stability of DNA-Methylation Profiles of Biological Aging in Children and Adolescents. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.10.30.564766. [PMID: 37961459 PMCID: PMC10635005 DOI: 10.1101/2023.10.30.564766] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2023]
Abstract
Background and Objectives Methylation profile scores (MPSs) index biological aging and aging-related disease in adults and are cross-sectionally associated with social determinants of health in childhood. MPSs thus provide an opportunity to trace how aging-related biology responds to environmental changes in early life. Information regarding the stability of MPSs in early life is currently lacking. Method We use longitudinal data from children and adolescents ages 8-18 (N = 428, M age = 12.15 years) from the Texas Twin Project. Participants contributed two waves of salivary DNA-methylation data (mean lag = 3.94 years), which were used to construct four MPSs reflecting multi-system physiological decline and mortality risk (PhenoAgeAccel and GrimAgeAccel), pace of biological aging (DunedinPACE), and cognitive function (Epigenetic-g). Furthermore, we exploit variation among participants in whether they were exposed to the COVID-19 pandemic during the course of study participation, in order to test how a historical period characterized by environmental disruption might affect children's aging-related MPSs. Results All MPSs showed moderate longitudinal stability (test-retest rs = 0.42, 0.44, 0.46, 0.51 for PhenoAgeAccel, GrimAgeAccel, and Epigenetic-g, and DunedinPACE, respectively). No differences in the stability of MPSs were apparent between those whose second assessment took place after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic vs. those for whom both assessments took place prior to the pandemic. Conclusions Aging-related DNA-methylation patterns are less stable in childhood than has been previously observed in adulthood. Further developmental research on the methylome is necessary to understand which environmental perturbations in childhood impact trajectories of biological aging and when children are most sensitive to those impacts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Abby J. deSteiguer
- Department of Psychology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA
| | - Laurel Raffington
- Max Planck Research Group Biosocial – Biology, Social Disparities, and Development, Max Planck Institute for Human Development, Berlin, Germany
| | - Aditi Sabhlok
- Department of Psychology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA
| | - Peter Tanksley
- Population Research Center, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA
| | - Elliot M. Tucker-Drob
- Department of Psychology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA
- Population Research Center, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA
| | - K. Paige Harden
- Department of Psychology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA
- Population Research Center, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA
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Noghanibehambari H, Noghani F. Long-run intergenerational health benefits of women empowerment: Evidence from suffrage movements in the US. HEALTH ECONOMICS 2023; 32:2583-2631. [PMID: 37482956 PMCID: PMC10592160 DOI: 10.1002/hec.4744] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2023] [Revised: 06/22/2023] [Accepted: 07/04/2023] [Indexed: 07/25/2023]
Abstract
An ongoing body of research documents that women empowerment is associated with improved outcomes for children. However, little is known about the long-run effects on health outcomes. This paper adds to this literature and studies the association between maternal exposure to suffrage reforms and children's old-age longevity. We utilize changes in suffrage laws across US states and over time as a source of incentivizing maternal investment in children's health and education. Using the universe of death records in the US over the years 1979-2020 and implementing a difference-in-difference econometric framework, we find that cohorts exposed to suffrage throughout their childhood live 0.6 years longer than unexposed cohorts. Furthermore, we show that these effects are not driven by preexisting trends in longevity, endogenous migration, selective fertility, and changes in the demographic composition of the sample. Additional analysis reveals that improvements in education and income are candidate mechanisms. Moreover, we find substantial improvements in early-adulthood socioeconomic standing, height, and height-for-age outcomes due to childhood exposure to suffrage movements. A series of state-level analyses suggest reductions in infant and child mortality following suffrage law change. We also find evidence that counties in states that passed the law experienced new openings of County Health Departments and increases in physicians per capita.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hamid Noghanibehambari
- Center for Demography of Health and Aging, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA
| | - Farzaneh Noghani
- Department of Management, College of Business, University of Houston-Clear Lake, Houston, Texas, USA
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31
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Livings MS, Smith-Greenaway E, Margolis R, Verdery AM. Lost support, lost skills: Children's cognitive outcomes following grandparental death. SOCIAL SCIENCE RESEARCH 2023; 116:102942. [PMID: 37981395 DOI: 10.1016/j.ssresearch.2023.102942] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2023] [Revised: 07/22/2023] [Accepted: 10/13/2023] [Indexed: 11/21/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE This study examines the implications of grandparental death for cognitive skills in middle childhood. METHOD This study uses data from the Future of Families and Child Wellbeing Study (N = 2479) to estimate ordinary least squares regression models of the associations between grandparental death and subsequent cognitive skills among children in middle childhood. RESULTS Experiencing a grandparental death between ages 5 and 9 is associated with boys' lower reading, verbal, and math scores at age 9, with associations most notable for Black and Hispanic boys; grandparental death before age 5 has minimal influence on boys' cognitive skills at age 9. There is little indication that grandparental death adversely affects girls' cognitive skills. CONCLUSION The numerous and persistent implications of grandparental death for boys' cognitive skills merit greater recognition of grandparental death as a source of family instability, stress, and ultimately inequality in child development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michelle Sarah Livings
- Center for Research on Child & Family Wellbeing, School of Public and International Affairs, Princeton University, 286 Wallace Hall, Princeton, NJ 08540, USA.
| | - Emily Smith-Greenaway
- Department of Sociology, Dornsife College of Letters, Arts, And Sciences, University of Southern California, 851 Downey Way HSH 212, Los Angeles, CA, USA 90089.
| | - Rachel Margolis
- Department of Sociology, University of Western Ontario, Social Science Centre Room 5306, London, Ontario, Canada N6A 5C2.
| | - Ashton M Verdery
- Department of Sociology and Criminology, College of the Liberal Arts, Penn State University, 211 Oswald Tower, University Park, PA, USA 16801.
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McDade TW, Ryan CP, Adair LS, Lee NR, Carba DB, MacIsaac JL, Dever K, Atashzay P, Kobor M, Kuzawa CW. Association between infectious exposures in infancy and epigenetic age acceleration in young adulthood in metropolitan Cebu, Philippines. Am J Hum Biol 2023; 35:e23948. [PMID: 37338007 PMCID: PMC10730771 DOI: 10.1002/ajhb.23948] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2022] [Revised: 06/06/2023] [Accepted: 06/07/2023] [Indexed: 06/21/2023] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVES The drivers of human life expectancy gains over the past 200 years are not well-established, with a potential role for historical reductions in infectious disease. We investigate whether infectious exposures in infancy predict biological aging using DNA methylation-based markers that forecast patterns of morbidity and mortality later in life. METHODS N = 1450 participants from the Cebu Longitudinal Health and Nutrition Survey-a prospective birth cohort initiated in 1983-provided complete data for the analyses. Mean chronological age was 20.9 years when venous whole blood samples were drawn for DNA extraction and methylation analysis, with subsequent calculation of three epigenetic age markers: Horvath, GrimAge, and DunedinPACE. Unadjusted and adjusted least squares regression models were evaluated to test the hypothesis that infectious exposures in infancy are associated with epigenetic age. RESULTS Birth in the dry season, a proxy measure for increased infectious exposure in the first year of life, as well as the number of symptomatic infections in the first year of infancy, predicted lower epigenetic age. Infectious exposures were associated with the distribution of white blood cells in adulthood, which were also associated with measures of epigenetic age. CONCLUSIONS We document negative associations between measures of infectious exposure in infancy and DNA methylation-based measures of aging. Additional research, across a wider range of epidemiological settings, is needed to clarify the role of infectious disease in shaping immunophenotypes and trajectories of biological aging and human life expectancy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas W. McDade
- Department of Anthropology, Northwestern University,
Evanston, IL 60208
- Institute for Policy Research, Northwestern University,
Evanston, IL 60208
| | - Calen P. Ryan
- Robert N. Butler Columbia Aging Center, Department of
Epidemiology, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health
| | - Linda S. Adair
- Department of Nutrition, Gillings School of Global Public
Health, Carolina Population Center, CB #8120, University of North Carolina at Chapel
Hill
| | - Nanette R. Lee
- Office of Population Studies Foundation, University of San
Carlos, Talamban, Cebu City Philippines
| | - Delia B. Carba
- Office of Population Studies Foundation, University of San
Carlos, Talamban, Cebu City Philippines
| | - Julia L. MacIsaac
- Department of Medical Genetics, Faculty of Medicine,
University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
- Edwin S.H. Leong Healthy Aging Program, University of
British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
- Centre for Molecular Medicine and Therapeutics, Vancouver,
British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Kristy Dever
- Department of Medical Genetics, Faculty of Medicine,
University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
- Edwin S.H. Leong Healthy Aging Program, University of
British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
- Centre for Molecular Medicine and Therapeutics, Vancouver,
British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Parmida Atashzay
- Department of Medical Genetics, Faculty of Medicine,
University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
- Edwin S.H. Leong Healthy Aging Program, University of
British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
- Centre for Molecular Medicine and Therapeutics, Vancouver,
British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Mike Kobor
- Department of Medical Genetics, Faculty of Medicine,
University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
- Edwin S.H. Leong Healthy Aging Program, University of
British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
- Centre for Molecular Medicine and Therapeutics, Vancouver,
British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Christopher W. Kuzawa
- Department of Anthropology, Northwestern University,
Evanston, IL 60208
- Institute for Policy Research, Northwestern University,
Evanston, IL 60208
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Lei MK, Berg MT, Simons RL, Beach SRH. Specifying the psychosocial pathways whereby child and adolescent adversity shape adult health outcomes. Psychol Med 2023; 53:6027-6036. [PMID: 36268877 PMCID: PMC10120399 DOI: 10.1017/s003329172200318x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/20/2022] [Revised: 08/29/2022] [Accepted: 09/26/2022] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Social scientists generally agree that health disparities are produced, at least in part, by adverse social experiences, especially during childhood and adolescence. Building on this research, we use an innovative method to measure early adversity while drawing upon a biopsychosocial perspective on health to formulate a model that specifies indirect pathways whereby childhood and adolescent adversity become biologically embedded and influence adult health. METHOD Using nearly 20 years of longitudinal data from 382 Black Americans, we use repeated-measures latent class analysis (RMLCA) to construct measures of childhood/adolescent adversities and their trajectories. Then, we employ structural equation modeling to examine the direct and indirect effects of childhood/adolescent adversity on health outcomes in adulthood through psychosocial maladjustment. RESULTS RMLCA identified two classes for each component of childhood/adolescent adversity across the ages of 10 to 18, suggesting that childhood/adolescent social adversities exhibit a prolonged heterogeneous developmental trajectory. The models controlled for early and adult mental health, sociodemographic and health-related covariates. Psychosocial maladjustment, measured by low self-esteem, depressive and anxiety symptoms, and lack of self-control, mediated the relationship between childhood/adolescent adversity, especially parental hostility, racial discrimination, and socioeconomic class, and both self-reported illness and blood-based accelerated biological aging (with proportion mediation ranging from 8.22% to 79.03%). CONCLUSION The results support a biopsychosocial model of health and provide further evidence that, among Black Americans, early life social environmental experiences, especially parenting, financial stress, and racial discrimination, are associated with adult health profiles, and furthermore, psychosocial mechanisms mediate this association.
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Affiliation(s)
- Man-Kit Lei
- Department of Sociology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA
| | - Mark T. Berg
- Department of Sociology and Criminology, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
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Raffington L, Schneper L, Mallard T, Fisher J, Vinnik L, Hollis-Hansen K, Notterman DA, Tucker-Drob EM, Mitchell C, Harden KP. Salivary Epigenetic Measures of Body Mass Index and Social Determinants of Health Across Childhood and Adolescence. JAMA Pediatr 2023; 177:1047-1054. [PMID: 37669030 PMCID: PMC10481322 DOI: 10.1001/jamapediatrics.2023.3017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2023] [Accepted: 05/07/2023] [Indexed: 09/06/2023]
Abstract
Importance Children who are socioeconomically disadvantaged are at increased risk for high body mass index (BMI) and multiple diseases in adulthood. The developmental origins of health and disease hypothesis proposes that early life conditions affect later-life health in a manner that is only partially modifiable by later-life experiences. Objective To examine whether epigenetic measures of BMI developed in adults are valid biomarkers of childhood BMI and if they are sensitive to early life social determinants of health. Design, Setting, and Participants This population-based study of over 3200 children and adolescents aged 8 to 18 years included data from 2 demographically diverse US pediatric cohort studies that combine longitudinal and twin study designs. Analyses were conducted from 2021 to 2022. Exposures Socioeconomic status, marginalized groups. Main Outcome and Measure Salivary epigenetic BMI, BMI. Analyses were conducted to validate the use of saliva epigenetic BMI as a potential biomarker of child BMI and to examine associations between epigenetic BMI and social determinants of health. Results Salivary epigenetic BMI was calculated from 2 cohorts: (1) 1183 individuals aged 8 to 18 years (609 female [51%]; mean age, 13.4 years) from the Texas Twin Project and (2) 2020 children (1011 female [50%]) measured at 9 years of age and 15 years of age from the Future of Families and Child Well-Being Study. Salivary epigenetic BMI was associated with children's BMI (r = 0.36; 95% CI, 0.31-0.40 to r = 0.50; 95% CI, 0.42-0.59). Longitudinal analysis found that epigenetic BMI was highly stable across adolescence but remained both a leading and lagging indicator of BMI change. Twin analyses showed that epigenetic BMI captured differences in BMI between monozygotic twins. Moreover, children from more disadvantaged socioeconomic status (b = -0.13 to -0.15 across samples) and marginalized racial and ethnic groups (b = 0.08-0.34 across samples) had higher epigenetic BMI, even when controlling for concurrent BMI, pubertal development, and tobacco exposure. Socioeconomic status at birth relative to concurrent socioeconomic status best predicted epigenetic BMI in childhood and adolescence (b = -0.15; 95% CI, -0.20 to -0.09). Conclusion and Relevance This study demonstrated that epigenetic measures of BMI calculated from pediatric saliva samples were valid biomarkers of childhood BMI and may be associated with early-life social inequalities. The findings are in line with the hypothesis that early-life conditions are especially important factors in epigenetic regulation of later-life health. Research showing that health later in life is linked to early-life conditions has important implications for the development of early-life interventions that could significantly extend healthy life span.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laurel Raffington
- Max Planck Research Group Biosocial – Biology, Social Disparities, and Development, Max Planck Institute for Human Development, Berlin, Germany
- Population Research Center, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin
| | - Lisa Schneper
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey
| | - Travis Mallard
- Population Research Center, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin
- Psychiatric and Neurodevelopmental Genetics Unit, Center for Genomic Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Jonah Fisher
- Survey Research Center, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
| | - Liza Vinnik
- Population Research Center, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin
| | | | - Daniel A. Notterman
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey
| | | | - Colter Mitchell
- Survey Research Center, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
- Population Studies Center, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
| | - K. Paige Harden
- Population Research Center, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin
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Jason K, Carr D, Chen Z. Race-Ethnic Differences in the Effects of COVID-19 on the Work, Stress, and Financial Outcomes of Older Adults. J Aging Health 2023; 35:749-760. [PMID: 36869728 PMCID: PMC9988627 DOI: 10.1177/08982643231159705] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/05/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES This study investigates race-ethnic differences among older non-Hispanic Black, non-Hispanic White, and Hispanic adults' financial, employment, and stress consequences of COVID-19. METHODS We use data from the Health and Retirement Study, including the 2020 COVID-panel, to evaluate a sample of 2,929 adults using a combination of bivariate tests, OLS regression analysis, and moderation tests. RESULTS Hispanic and non-Hispanic Black older adults experienced more financial hardships, higher levels of COVID-19 stress, and higher rates of job loss associated with COVID-19 relative to their Non-Hispanic White counterparts. Non-Hispanic Black and Hispanic adults reported significantly higher levels of COVID-19 resilience resources, yet, these resources were not protective of the consequences of COVID-19. DISCUSSION Understanding how the experiences of managing and coping with COVID-19 stressors differ by race-ethnicity can better inform intervention design and support services.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kendra Jason
- Department of Sociology, UNC-Charlotte, Charlotte, NC, USA
| | - Dawn Carr
- Department of Sociology, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL, USA
| | - Zhao Chen
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
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36
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Pati S, Sinha A, Verma P, Kshatri J, Kanungo S, Sahoo KC, Mahapatra P, Pati S, Delpino FM, Krolow A, Teixeira DSDC, Batista S, Nunes BP, Weller D, Mercer SW. Childhood health and educational disadvantage are associated with adult multimorbidity in the global south: findings from a cross-sectional analysis of nationally representative surveys in India and Brazil. J Epidemiol Community Health 2023; 77:617-624. [PMID: 37541775 PMCID: PMC10511991 DOI: 10.1136/jech-2022-219507] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2022] [Accepted: 05/21/2023] [Indexed: 08/06/2023]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Multimorbidity has emerged as a major healthcare challenge in low/middle-income countries (LMICs) such as India and Brazil. Life course epidemiology suggests that adverse events in early life contribute to an individual's later health in adulthood. However, little is known about the influence of early life health and social factors on the development of multimorbidity in adulthood in LMICs. We aimed to explore the association of adult multimorbidity with childhood health and social disadvantages among two LMICs, India and Brazil. METHODS We conducted a secondary data analysis of older adults aged ≥50 years using nationally representative surveys from Longitudinal Ageing Study in India, 2017-2018 (n=51 481) and 'Estudo Longitudinal da Saude e Bem-Estar dos Idosos Brasileirous', 2015-2016 (n=8730). We estimated the prevalence of multimorbidity along with 95% CI as a measure of uncertainty for all weighted proportions. Log link in generalised linear model was used to assess the association between childhood health and disadvantages with multimorbidity, reported as adjusted prevalence ratio (APR). RESULTS The prevalence of multimorbidity was 25.53% and 55.24% in India and Brazil, respectively. Participants who perceived their childhood health as poor and missed school for a month or more due to illness had the highest level of multimorbidity across both countries. After adjusting for age and gender, a significant association between adult multimorbidity and poor self-rated childhood health (APR: (India: 1.38, 1.16 to 1.65) and (Brazil: 1.19, 1.09 to 1.30)); and missed school for a month due to illness (AOR: (India: 1.73, 1.49 to 2.01) and (Brazil: 1.16, 1.08 to 1.25)) was observed. CONCLUSION Early life health, educational and economic disadvantages are associated with adult multimorbidity and appear to contribute to the later course of life. A life course approach to the prevention of multimorbidity in adulthood in LMICs may be useful in health programmes and policies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sanghamitra Pati
- Division of Public Health, ICMR-Regional Medical Research Centre, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India
| | - Abhinav Sinha
- Division of Public Health, ICMR-Regional Medical Research Centre, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India
| | - Priyanka Verma
- Division of Public Health, ICMR-Regional Medical Research Centre, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India
| | - Jayasingh Kshatri
- Division of Public Health, ICMR-Regional Medical Research Centre, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India
| | - Srikanta Kanungo
- Division of Public Health, ICMR-Regional Medical Research Centre, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India
| | - Krushna Chandra Sahoo
- Division of Public Health, ICMR-Regional Medical Research Centre, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India
| | - Pranab Mahapatra
- Department of Psychiatry, Kalinga Institute of Medical Sciences, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India
- Lown Fellow, Harvard T H Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Sandipana Pati
- Department of Health & Family Welfare, Odisha State Institute of Health and Family Welfare, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India
| | | | - Andria Krolow
- Department of Nursing, Federal University of Pelotas, Pelotas, Brazil
| | | | - Sandro Batista
- School of Medicine, Federal University of Goias, Goiania, Brazil
| | - Bruno P Nunes
- Department of Nursing, Federal University of Pelotas, Pelotas, Brazil
| | - David Weller
- College of Medicine, The University of Edinburgh Usher Institute of Population Health Sciences and Informatics, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Stewart W Mercer
- College of Medicine, The University of Edinburgh Usher Institute of Population Health Sciences and Informatics, Edinburgh, UK
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Aldea N, Ordanovich D, Palloni A, Ramiro D, Viciana F. Influence of Place of Birth on Adult Mortality: The Case of Spain. EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF POPULATION = REVUE EUROPEENNE DE DEMOGRAPHIE 2023; 39:30. [PMID: 37679516 PMCID: PMC10484828 DOI: 10.1007/s10680-023-09679-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2022] [Accepted: 07/31/2023] [Indexed: 09/09/2023]
Abstract
We use a unique data set from Spain and we estimate life expectancy at age 50 for males and females by place of residence and place of birth. We show that, consistent with expectations regarding the influence of early conditions on adult health and mortality, the effects of place of birth on adult mortality are very strong, irrespective of place of residence. Furthermore, we find that mortality levels observed in a place are strongly influenced by the composition of migrants by place of birth. This is reflected in a new measure of heritability of early childhood conditions that attains a value in the range 0.42-0.43, implying that as much as 43 percent of the variance in Spain's life expectancy at age 50 is explained by place of birth. Finally, we find evidence of the healthy migrant effect, that is, positive health selection of migrants, at a regional level.
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Affiliation(s)
- Néstor Aldea
- Institute of Economy, Geography and Demography (IEGD), CSIC-CCHS, Calle Albasanz 26-28, 28037, Madrid, Spain.
- French Institute for Demographic Studies (INED), Aubervilliers, France.
| | - Dariya Ordanovich
- Institute of Economy, Geography and Demography (IEGD), CSIC-CCHS, Calle Albasanz 26-28, 28037, Madrid, Spain
| | - Alberto Palloni
- Institute of Economy, Geography and Demography (IEGD), CSIC-CCHS, Calle Albasanz 26-28, 28037, Madrid, Spain
- Center for Demography & Ecology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
| | - Diego Ramiro
- Institute of Economy, Geography and Demography (IEGD), CSIC-CCHS, Calle Albasanz 26-28, 28037, Madrid, Spain
| | - Francisco Viciana
- Institute of Statistics and Cartography of Andalusia (IECA), Seville, Spain
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Rauf T. Differential sensitivity to adversity by income: Evidence from a study of Bereavement. SOCIAL SCIENCE RESEARCH 2023; 115:102920. [PMID: 37858363 DOI: 10.1016/j.ssresearch.2023.102920] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/19/2023] [Revised: 08/08/2023] [Accepted: 08/10/2023] [Indexed: 10/21/2023]
Abstract
Adverse life events are often understood as having negative consequences for mental health via objective hardships, which are worse for persons with less income. But adversity can also affect mental health via more subjective mechanisms, and here, it is possible that persons with higher income will exhibit greater psychological sensitivity to negative events, for various reasons. Drawing on multiple sociological literatures, this article theorizes potential mechanisms of increasing sensitivity with income. The proposition of differential sensitivity is tested using the strategic case of spousal and parental bereavement among older US adults. The analyses find consistent evidence of increasing sensitivity of depressive symptoms with income. A series of robustness checks indicate that findings are not due to endogenous or antecedent selection. Further, exploratory analyses of mechanisms suggest that higher sensitivity among the affluent was driven by greater expectations and better relationship quality with the deceased. These findings problematize the conceptualization and assessment of human suffering in economically stratified societies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tamkinat Rauf
- Department of Sociology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1180 Observatory Drive, Madison, WI, 53706, USA.
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Malani A, Archie EA, Rosenbaum S. Conceptual and analytical approaches for modelling the developmental origins of inequality. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2023; 378:20220306. [PMID: 37381859 PMCID: PMC10291426 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2022.0306] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/02/2023] [Accepted: 04/19/2023] [Indexed: 06/30/2023] Open
Abstract
In many species, individuals that experience harsh conditions during development have poor health and fitness outcomes in adulthood, compared with peers that do not. These early-life contributions to inequality are often attributed to two classes of evolutionary hypotheses: Developmental Constraints (DC) models, which focus on the deleterious effects of low-quality early-life environments, and Predictive Adaptive Response (PAR) hypotheses, which emphasize the costs individuals incur when they make incorrect predictions about conditions in adulthood. Testing these hypotheses empirically is difficult for conceptual and analytical reasons. Here, we help resolve some of these difficulties by providing mathematical definitions for DC, PAR (particularly focusing on 'external' PAR) and related concepts. We propose a novel, quadratic regression-based statistical test derived from these definitions. Our simulations show that this approach markedly improves the ability to discriminate between DC and PAR hypotheses relative to the status quo approach, which uses interaction effects. Simulated data indicate that the interaction effects approach often conflates PAR with DC, while the quadratic regression approach yields high sensitivity and specificity for detecting PAR. Our results highlight the value of linking verbal and visual models to a formal mathematical treatment for understanding the developmental origins of inequitable adult outcomes. This article is part of the theme issue 'Evolutionary ecology of inequality'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anup Malani
- University of Chicago Law School and National Bureau of Economic Research, Chicago, IL 60637, USA
| | - Elizabeth A. Archie
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556, USA
| | - Stacy Rosenbaum
- Department of Anthropology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
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40
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Wolfe JD, Thomeer MB, Reczek R. Age at first birth and women's midlife health: Cohort and race differences across the 20th century. Soc Sci Med 2023; 331:116097. [PMID: 37473543 PMCID: PMC10529505 DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2023.116097] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2023] [Revised: 07/12/2023] [Accepted: 07/13/2023] [Indexed: 07/22/2023]
Abstract
We test whether the negative association between socially "early" childbearing and poor health in later adulthood, well-established in prior research, differs across distinct historical contexts in the U.S.We further examine whether socioeconomic status explains this shift in the impact of childbearing timing and poor health and whether there are additional differences across racial groups. To address these questions, we pooled data from two nationally representative longitudinal surveys: the National Longitudinal Surveys' Mature Women (born 1922-1937) and Youth 1979 (born 1957-1964). Together, these NLS cohorts include women who entered adolescence before and after the major economic, political, and demographic changes in the latter half of the twentieth century that gave women access to socioeconomic structures previously limited to White men. These data thus provide a unique opportunity to test cohort and racial differences. Overall, findings suggest that the negative association of young childbearing, which included adolescent childbearing and childbearing in early 20s, with midlife health grew across the two cohorts, with this largely explained by differences in adult educational attainment. This cohort shift appeared especially large for White women compared to Black women. This study highlights the importance of sociopolitical context in shaping the health consequences of major life events like childbearing.
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41
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Huoyun Z, Shilong M, Zhaoqi L, Huiqin X. Early socioeconomic status, social mobility and cognitive trajectories in later life: A life course perspective. ECONOMICS AND HUMAN BIOLOGY 2023; 50:101281. [PMID: 37490832 DOI: 10.1016/j.ehb.2023.101281] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2023] [Revised: 07/07/2023] [Accepted: 07/17/2023] [Indexed: 07/27/2023]
Abstract
Using the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey (CLHLS) from 2008 to 2018 accompanied by the growth curve model, we examined the association between early socioeconomic status, social mobility, and divergent cognitive trajectories in later life within a society undergoing significant transformation. The study confirmed a positive relationship between socioeconomic status in early life and cognitive ability in later life. However, socioeconomic status in adulthood is associated with better cognitive ability in old age compared to that in childhood. Meanwhile, upward social mobility mitigates the negative correlation between socioeconomic disadvantage in early life and cognitive ability in later life. In addition, the inequality in socioeconomic status at earlier stages resulted in heterogeneous cognitive trajectories, with the double cumulative disadvantage effect resulting from education being particularly noteworthy. Thus, Chinese health policy should focus on the earlier stages of life, actively promoting inclusive family policies and improving the family's role in protecting childhood from an adverse environment. Simultaneously, education and employment fairness should be strengthened to accelerate social mobility and enhance the "Health Repair Mechanism" of the second life course.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhu Huoyun
- School of Public Administration and Emergency Management, Jinan University, Guangzhou, China; Institute of Common Prosperity and National Governance, Jinan University, Guangzhou, China.
| | - Ma Shilong
- School of Public Administration and Emergency Management, Jinan University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Li Zhaoqi
- School of Public Administration and Emergency Management, Jinan University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Xia Huiqin
- College of Political Science and Law, JiangXi Normal University, Nanchang, China
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Green KM, Doherty EE, Bugbee BA. Can Early Disadvantage Be Overcome? A Life Course Approach to Understanding How Disadvantage, Education, and Social Integration Impact Mortality into Middle Adulthood Among a Black American Cohort. PREVENTION SCIENCE : THE OFFICIAL JOURNAL OF THE SOCIETY FOR PREVENTION RESEARCH 2023; 24:829-840. [PMID: 35841492 PMCID: PMC9287823 DOI: 10.1007/s11121-022-01408-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 07/05/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Health equity research has identified fundamental social causes of health, many of which disproportionately affect Black Americans, such as early life socioeconomic conditions, neighborhood disadvantage, and racial discrimination. However, the role of life course factors in premature mortality among Black Americans has not been tested extensively in prospective samples into later adulthood. To better understand how social factors at various life stages impact mortality, this study examines the effect of life course poverty, neighborhood disadvantage, and discrimination on mortality and factors that may buffer their effect (i.e., education, social integration) among the Woodlawn cohort (N = 1242), a community cohort of urban Black Americans followed since 1966. Taking a life course perspective, we analyze mortality data for deaths through age 58 years old, as well as data collected at ages 6, 16, 32, and 42. At age 58, 204 (16.4%) of the original cohort have died, with ages of death ranging from 9 to 58.98 (mean = 42.9). Cox proportional hazard models adjusting for confounders show statistically significant differences in mortality risk based on timing and persistence of poverty; those who were never poor or poor only in early life had lower mortality risk at ages 43-58 than those who were persistently poor from childhood to adulthood. Education beyond high school and high social integration were shown to reduce the risk of mortality more for those who did not experience poverty early in their life course. Findings have implications for the timing and content of mortality prevention efforts that span the full life course.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kerry M Green
- School of Public Health, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA.
| | - Elaine E Doherty
- School of Public Health, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA
| | - Brittany A Bugbee
- School of Public Health, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA
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Intergenerational educational trajectories and inequalities in longevity: A population-based study of adults born before 1965 in 14 European countries. SSM Popul Health 2023; 22:101367. [PMID: 36873264 PMCID: PMC9974424 DOI: 10.1016/j.ssmph.2023.101367] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2022] [Revised: 02/03/2023] [Accepted: 02/18/2023] [Indexed: 02/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Background While educational gradients in longevity have been observed consistently in adult Europeans, these inequalities have been understudied within the context of family- and country-level influences. We utilized population-based multi-generational multi-country data to assess the role (1) of parental and individual education in shaping intergenerational inequalities in longevity, and (2) of country-level social net expenditure in mitigating these inequalities. Methods We analyzed data from 52,271 adults born before 1965 who participated in the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe, comprising 14 countries. Mortality from all causes (outcome) was ascertained between 2013 and 2020. Educational trajectories (exposure) were High-High (reference), Low-High, High-Low, and Low-Low, corresponding to the sequence of parental-individual educational attainment. We quantified inequalities as years of life lost (YLL) between the ages of 50 and 90 estimated via differences in the area under standardized survival curves. We assessed the association between country-level social net expenditure and YLL via meta-regression. Results Inequalities in longevity due to educational trajectories were associated with low individual education regardless of parental education. Compared to High-High, having High-Low and Low-Low led to 2.2 (95% confidence intervals: 1.0 to 3.5) and 2.9 (2.2 to 3.6) YLL, while YLL for Low-High were 0.4 (-0.2 to 0.9). A 1% increase in social net expenditure led to an increase of 0.01 (-0.3 to 0.3) YLL for Low-High, 0.007 (-0.1 to 0.2) YLL for High-Low, and a decrease of 0.02 (-0.1 to 0.2) YLL for Low-Low. Conclusion In European countries, individual education could be the main driver of inequalities in longevity for adults older than 50 years of age and born before 1965. Further, higher social expenditure is not associated with smaller educational inequalities in longevity.
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Fan Q, Chen H. The "long arm" of adverse childhood experiences on adult health depreciation in China. CHILD ABUSE & NEGLECT 2023; 143:106234. [PMID: 37244079 DOI: 10.1016/j.chiabu.2023.106234] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/10/2022] [Revised: 02/22/2023] [Accepted: 05/03/2023] [Indexed: 05/29/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The effects of childhood adversity on health may persist into the middle and old-aged. The assessment of the long-term effect of adverse childhood experiences (ACE) on adult health depreciation promotes a paradigm shift from current factors in health to early causation shaping health life course trajectories. OBJECTIVE Determine whether the direct and significant dose-response effect between childhood adversity and health depreciation holds true, and to examine whether socioeconomic status (SES) in adulthood can diminish the negative effects of ACE. METHODS A sample of 6344 nationally representative respondents (48 % were male; Mage = 64.48 years old, SD = 9.6 years old) was obtained. Adverse childhood experiences were collected from a Life History survey in China. Health depreciation was assessed by years lived with disabilities (YLDs) based on the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) disability weights. Ordinary least squares and matching methods (propensity score matching and coarsened exact matching) were used to test the relationship and treatment effect between ACEs and health depreciation. Mediating effect coefficients test and the Karlson-Holm-Breen (KHB) examined the mediating effect of socioeconomic status in adulthood. RESULTS Compared to respondents without ACE, respondents who experienced 1 ACE increased YLD 15.9 % (p < 0.01); 2 ACEs by 32.8 % (p < 0.01); 3 ACEs by 47.4 % (p < 0.01), and 4+ ACEs by 71.5 % (p < 0.01) higher YLDs. The mediating effect of SES in adulthood was only between 3.9 % and 8.2 %. The interaction effect between ACE and adult socioeconomic status was not significant. CONCLUSION The "long arm" of ACE on health depreciation exhibited a significant dose-response relationship. Policies and measures aimed at reducing family dysfunction and strengthening early childhood health interventions can facilitate the reduction of health depreciation in middle and old age.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qiuyan Fan
- Dong Fureng Institute of Economic and Social Development, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430072, China.
| | - Hao Chen
- Center for Social Security Studies of Wuhan University, Wuhan University, No. 299, Bayi Road, Wuchang District, Wuhan, Hubei 430072, China.
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Lange EC, Zeng S, Campos FA, Li F, Tung J, Archie EA, Alberts SC. Early life adversity and adult social relationships have independent effects on survival in a wild primate. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2023; 9:eade7172. [PMID: 37196090 PMCID: PMC10191438 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.ade7172] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/07/2022] [Accepted: 04/11/2023] [Indexed: 05/19/2023]
Abstract
Adverse conditions in early life can have negative consequences for adult health and survival in humans and other animals. What variables mediate the relationship between early adversity and adult survival? Adult social environments represent one candidate: Early life adversity is linked to social adversity in adulthood, and social adversity in adulthood predicts survival outcomes. However, no study has prospectively linked early life adversity, adult social behavior, and adult survival to measure the extent to which adult social behavior mediates this relationship. We do so in a wild baboon population in Amboseli, Kenya. We find weak mediation and largely independent effects of early adversity and adult sociality on survival. Furthermore, strong social bonds and high social status in adulthood can buffer some negative effects of early adversity. These results support the idea that affiliative social behavior is subject to natural selection through its positive relationship with survival, and they highlight possible targets for intervention to improve human health and well-being.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elizabeth C. Lange
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham NC, USA
- Department of Biological Sciences, State University of New York at Oswego, Oswego NY, USA
| | - Shuxi Zeng
- Department of Statistical Science, Duke University, Durham NC, USA
| | - Fernando A. Campos
- Department of Anthropology, The University of Texas at San Antonio, San Antonio TX, USA
| | - Fan Li
- Department of Statistical Science, Duke University, Durham NC, USA
| | - Jenny Tung
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham NC, USA
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham NC, USA
- Duke Population Research Institute, Duke University, Durham NC, USA
- Department of Primate Behavior and Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
- Canadian Institute for Advanced Research, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- University of Leipzig, Faculty of Life Science, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Elizabeth A. Archie
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame IN, USA
| | - Susan C. Alberts
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham NC, USA
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham NC, USA
- Duke Population Research Institute, Duke University, Durham NC, USA
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Courtney MG, Roberts J, Quintero Y, Godde K. Childhood Family Environment and Osteoporosis in a Population-Based Cohort Study of Middle-to Older-Age Americans. JBMR Plus 2023; 7:e10735. [PMID: 37197319 PMCID: PMC10184016 DOI: 10.1002/jbm4.10735] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/02/2022] [Revised: 01/19/2023] [Accepted: 02/09/2023] [Indexed: 02/16/2023] Open
Abstract
Demographic and early-life socioeconomic and parental investment factors may influence later-life health and development of chronic and progressive diseases, including osteoporosis, a costly condition common among women. The "long arm of childhood" literature links negative early-life exposures to lower socioeconomic attainment and worse adult health. We build on a small literature linking childhood socioeconomic status (SES) and bone health, providing evidence of whether associations exist between lower childhood SES and maternal investment and higher risk of osteoporosis diagnosis. We further examine whether persons identifying with non-White racial/ethnic groups experience underdiagnosis. Data from the nationally representative, population-based cohort Health and Retirement Study (N = 5,490-11,819) were analyzed for participants ages 50-90 to assess these relationships. Using a machine learning algorithm, we estimated seven survey-weighted logit models. Greater maternal investment was linked to lower odds of osteoporosis diagnosis (odds ratio [OR] = 0.80, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.69, 0.92), but childhood SES was not (OR = 1.03, 95% CI = 0.94, 1.13). Identifying as Black/African American (OR = 0.56, 95% CI = 0.40, 0.80) was associated with lower odds, and identifying as female (OR = 7.22, 95% CI = 5.54, 9.40) produced higher odds of diagnosis. There were differences in diagnosis across intersectional racial/ethnic and sex identities, after accounting for having a bone density scan, and a model predicting bone density scan receipt demonstrated unequal screening across groups. Greater maternal investment was linked to lower odds of osteoporosis diagnosis, likely reflecting links to life-course accumulation of human capital and childhood nutrition. There is some evidence of underdiagnosis related to bone density scan access. Yet results demonstrated a limited role for the long arm of childhood in later-life osteoporosis diagnosis. Findings suggest that (1) clinicians should consider life-course context when assessing osteoporosis risk and (2) diversity, equity, and inclusivity training for clinicians could improve health equity. © 2023 The Authors. JBMR Plus published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of American Society for Bone and Mineral Research.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Josephine Roberts
- Department of Sociology/AnthropologyUniversity of La VerneLa VerneCaliforniaUSA
| | - Yadira Quintero
- Department of Sociology/AnthropologyUniversity of La VerneLa VerneCaliforniaUSA
| | - K. Godde
- Department of Sociology/AnthropologyUniversity of La VerneLa VerneCaliforniaUSA
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Lamu AN, Chen G, Olsen JA. Amplified disparities: The association between spousal education and own health. Soc Sci Med 2023; 323:115832. [PMID: 36947992 DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2023.115832] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/26/2022] [Revised: 02/28/2023] [Accepted: 03/07/2023] [Indexed: 03/16/2023]
Abstract
Positive associations between own educational attainment and own health have been extensively documented. Studies have also shown spousal educational attainment to be associated with own health. This paper investigates the extent to which spousal education contributes to the social gradient in health, net of own education; and whether parts of a seeming spousal education effect are attributable to differences in early-life human capital, as measured by respondents' height and childhood living standard. Furthermore, we investigate the relative contribution of predictors in the regression analysis by use of Shapley value decomposition. We use data from a comprehensive health survey from Northern Norway (conducted in 2015/16, N = 21,083, aged 40 and above). We apply three alternative health outcome measures: the EQ-5D-5L index, a visual analogue scale (EQ-VAS) and self-rated health. In all models considered, spousal education is generally positively significant for both men and women. The results also suggest that spousal education is generally more important for men than women. In the sub-sample of individuals having a spouse, decomposition analyses showed that the relative contribution of spousal education to the goodness-of-fit in men's (women's) health was 13% (14%) with the EQ-5D-5L; 25% (20%) with the EQ-VAS and; 30% (21%) with self-rated health. Heterogeneity analyses showed stronger spousal education effects in younger age groups. In conclusion, we have provided empirical evidence that spousal education may contribute to explaining the amplified health gradient in an egalitarian country like Norway.
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Affiliation(s)
- Admassu N Lamu
- NORCE - Norwegian Research Center, Bergen, Norway; Department of Community Medicine, UiT - the Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Gang Chen
- Centre for Health Economics, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Jan Abel Olsen
- Department of Community Medicine, UiT - the Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway; Centre for Health Economics, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia; Norwegian Institute of Public Health, Oslo, Norway.
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Sheehan C, Cantu P, Powell D, Tran S. Childhood health conditions and insomnia among adults in mid-life. AGING AND HEALTH RESEARCH 2023; 3:100124. [PMID: 37008305 PMCID: PMC10065450 DOI: 10.1016/j.ahr.2023.100124] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Little is known regarding the influence of childhood health broadly and childhood health conditions specifically on insomnia throughout adulthood. Methods Health and Retirement Study (HRS) Baby Boomers born 1954-1965 were investigated. We fitted regression models predicting self-reported insomnia based on twenty-three retrospectively reported specific childhood health conditions (e.g., measles) and general childhood health measures and adjusted for demographics, childhood socioeconomic status, and adult socioeconomic status. Results Nearly all the measures of childhood health significantly increased insomnia symptoms in adulthood. In a model where all measures were included, we found that respiratory disorders, headaches, stomach problems, and concussions were particularly strong predictors of insomnia. Conclusions Our findings extend past work illustrating the "long arm" of childhood conditions for health, showing that specific health conditions in childhood may indelibly imprint insomnia risk.
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Affiliation(s)
- Connor Sheehan
- School of Social and Family Dynamics, Arizona State University, T. Denny Sanford School of Social and Family Dynamics, Arizona State University, P.O. Box 873701, Tempe, AZ 85287-3701, United States
| | - Phillip Cantu
- Department of Internal Medicine – Geriatrics, University of Texas Medical Branch, 301 University Blvd, Galveston, TX 77555, United States
| | - Danielle Powell
- Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, 615N Wolfe St, Baltimore, MD 21205, United States
| | - Sydney Tran
- School of Social and Family Dynamics, Arizona State University, T. Denny Sanford School of Social and Family Dynamics, Arizona State University, P.O. Box 873701, Tempe, AZ 85287-3701, United States
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Teas E, Marceau K, Friedman E. Life-course social connectedness: Comparing data-driven and theoretical classifications as predictors of functional limitations in adulthood. ADVANCES IN LIFE COURSE RESEARCH 2023; 55:100529. [PMID: 36942641 PMCID: PMC10115127 DOI: 10.1016/j.alcr.2023.100529] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2022] [Revised: 01/16/2023] [Accepted: 01/29/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
A life course perspective on social relationships highlights the importance of specific relationships at specific times in life, but analyses that account for life course trajectories in social relationships are rare. This study compares theoretical and data-driven approaches to classifying life course relationships, including multiple dimensions of social connectedness at different time points across the life course. We examine each approach's ability to predict later-life functional limitations, given that functional impairment is prevalent among middle-aged and older adults. Data were from three waves of the Midlife in the United States (MIDUS) study (n = 6909). Relationship variables (parental affection, parental discipline, social support, social strain, and positive relations with others) were from wave 1 or wave 2. Functional limitations were measured at wave 3. Results showed that the data-driven approach had more predictive power than the theoretical approach. Additionally, results suggested that including only positive relationship features was nearly as robust as including both positive and negative relationship features. Overall, the data-driven approach outperformed the theoretical approach and revealed relationship trajectories consistent with life course cumulative processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elizabeth Teas
- Department of Human Development and Family Science, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USA; Center on Aging and the Life Course, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USA.
| | - Kristine Marceau
- Department of Human Development and Family Science, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USA
| | - Elliot Friedman
- Department of Human Development and Family Science, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USA; Center on Aging and the Life Course, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USA
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50
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Wang Y, Zhang C, Hikichi H, Kawachi I, Li X. Longitudinal Associations Between Disaster Damage and Falls/Fear of Falling in Older Adults: 9-Year Follow-Up of Survivors of the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami. Innov Aging 2023; 7:igad020. [PMID: 37056712 PMCID: PMC10089294 DOI: 10.1093/geroni/igad020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/29/2022] [Indexed: 03/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Background and Objectives Fear of falling and falls are common in older adults. However, their associations with natural disaster exposures remain poorly understood. This study aims to examine longitudinal associations between disaster damage with fear of falling/falls among older disaster survivors. Research Design and Methods In this natural experiment study, the baseline survey (4,957 valid responses) took place 7 months before the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami, and 3 follow-ups were conducted in 2013, 2016, and 2020. Exposures were different types of disaster damage and community social capital. Outcomes were fear of falling and falls (including incident and recurrent falls). We used lagged outcomes in logistic models adjusting for covariates and further examined instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs) as a mediator. Results The baseline sample had a mean (standard deviation) age of 74.8 (7.1) years; 56.4% were female. Financial hardship was associated with fear of falling (odds ratio (OR), 1.75; 95% confidence interval (CI) [1.33, 2.28]) and falls (OR, 1.29; 95% CI [1.05, 1.58]), especially recurrent falls (OR, 3.53; 95% CI [1.90, 6.57]). Relocation was inversely linked with fear of falling (OR, 0.57; 95% CI [0.34, 0.94]). Social cohesion was protectively associated with fear of falling (OR, 0.82; 95% CI [0.71, 0.95]) and falls (OR, 0.88; 95% CI [0.78, 0.98]) whereas social participation increased the risk of these issues. IADL partially mediated observed associations between disaster damage and fear of falling/falls. Discussion and Implications Experiences of material damage rather than psychological trauma were associated with falls and fear of falling, and the increased risk of recurrent falls revealed a process of cumulative disadvantage. Findings could inform targeted strategies for protecting older disaster survivors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuhang Wang
- Department of Sociology, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
| | - Chenggang Zhang
- Department of Sociology, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
| | - Hiroyuki Hikichi
- School of Medicine, Kitasato University, Sagamihara, Kanagawa, Japan
| | - Ichiro Kawachi
- Department of Sociology, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
- Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Xiaoyu Li
- Department of Sociology, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
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