@article {11017, title = {Longitudinal analysis of psychosocial stressors and body mass index in middle-aged and older adults in the United States.}, journal = {Journal of Gerontology: Series B }, volume = {76}, year = {2021}, pages = {1580-1589}, abstract = {

OBJECTIVE: Psychosocial stress may be a risk factor for obesity and overweight in middle-aged and older adults. However, research on psychosocial stress and excess body weight has typically been cross-sectional and focused on single stressors.

METHODS: Using three waves of data from the Health and Retirement Study, we conducted longitudinal analyses to assess associations between five psychosocial stressors-individually and in combination-and body mass index (BMI), adjusting for sociodemographic factors, alcohol use, and smoking history. We tested interaction effects between race and gender with stressors on BMI.

RESULTS: A total of 3,956 participants were included in the main analyses. Most participants were White (88.04\%) and more than half were female (60.39\%). Perceived discrimination, financial stress, and relationship stress were positively associated with BMI. A greater cumulative stress burden was associated with higher BMI. In stratified analyses, greater financial stress was associated with higher BMI among White participants, whereas greater neighborhood stress was associated with lower BMI among Black participants. Greater relationship stress, financial stress, cumulative high-stress, and overall cumulative stress burden were associated with higher BMI for women, but not men.

DISCUSSIONS: Different sources of stress may be risk factors to weight gain and impact BMI in adults. White and female adults may be more susceptible to the obesogenic effects of stressors. Reducing exposure to stress may help reduce the burden of high BMI among middle-aged and older adults.

}, keywords = {BMI, middle-aged, Older Adults, Psychosocial stress}, issn = {1758-5368}, doi = {10.1093/geronb/gbaa142}, author = {Cuevas, Adolfo G and Greatorex-Voith, Siobhan and Shervin Assari and Slopen, Natalie and Economos, Christina D} } @article {10676, title = {Associations Between Diagnosis with Type 2 Diabetes and Changes in Physical Activity among Middle-Aged and Older Adults in the United States}, journal = {Innovation in Aging}, volume = {4}, year = {2020}, pages = {igz048}, abstract = {BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Physical activity (PA) is an effective strategy for diabetes self-management and is central to the diabetes regimen. Diagnostic events present an opportunity for health behavior change; however, many older adults with type 2 diabetes (T2D) do not engage in regular PA. The relationships between diagnosis events and subsequent changes in PA are not well understood. Drawing upon life-course theory, this is the first study to examine whether the diagnosis of T2D is followed by a change in PA, whether these changes are sustained, and the sociodemographic characteristics associated with these changes. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: We examined associations between T2D diagnosis and PA changes among 2,394 adults ages 51+ from the Health and Retirement Study (2004-2014). PA changes were measured using metabolic equivalents of task (METs) estimated values accounting for the vigor and frequency of self-reported PA. Using piecewise mixed models, we examined initial and sustained changes in METs over time and tested whether these changes were modified by race/ethnicity, educational level, gender, and age at diagnosis. RESULTS: Across participants, a significant postdiagnosis increase was observed in self-reported PA following the diagnostic event (β: 0.54, 95\% CI: 0.10, 0.97). The steepness of decline in PA participation over time did not change significantly following T2D diagnosis. Age at diagnosis and race/ethnicity significantly moderated these relationships: participants diagnosed at older ages were less likely to improve PA following diagnosis and non-Hispanic whites experienced relatively steeper rates of decline following diagnosis with T2D. DISCUSSION AND IMPLICATIONS: Modest diagnosis-related increases in PA were observed among participants overall. The usual rate of decline in PA appears unaffected by diagnosis overall. Age at diagnosis and race/ethnicity moderated these relationships. Key implications for future research and clinical practice are discussed.}, keywords = {Age at diagnosis, Chronic disease self-management, Event-oriented model, Life-course perspective, Piecewise regression, Race/ethnicity}, isbn = {2399-5300}, doi = {10.1093/geroni/igz048}, author = {Emily J Nicklett and Chen, Jieling and Xiang, Xiaoling and Leah R. Abrams and Amanda Sonnega and Kimson E Johnson and Cheng, Jianjia and Shervin Assari} } @article {11903, title = {Educational mobility and telomere length in middle-aged and older adults: testing three alternative hypotheses.}, journal = {Biodemography and Social Biology}, volume = {66}, year = {2020}, pages = {220-235}, abstract = {

Critical period, social mobility, and social accumulation are three hypotheses that may explain how educational mobility impacts health. Thus far, there is little evidence on how these processes are associated with biological aging as measured by telomere length. Using cross-sectional data from the 2008 Health and Retirement Study, we examined the association between educational mobility (parental education and contemporaneous education) and telomere length. The final model is adjusted for sociodemographic factors and socioeconomic status, childhood adversity, and health behaviors/risk factors, as well as depressive symptoms. A total of 1,894 participants were included in the main analyses. High parental education was associated with longer telomere length in a fully adjusted model (B~=~0.03, CI [0.002,0.07]). Downwardly mobile individuals (high parental education and low contemporaneous education) had longer telomere length compared to stably low individuals in a fully adjusted model (B~=~0.05, CI [0.004,0.09]). There was support for the critical period hypothesis and partial support for the change hypothesis. There was no evidence to support the social accumulation hypothesis. Prospective studies are needed to understand the mechanism that can help further explain the association between educational mobility and telomere length.

}, keywords = {Education, social mobility, Telomere length}, issn = {1948-5573}, doi = {10.1080/19485565.2021.1983760}, author = {Cuevas, Adolfo G and Greatorex-Voith, Siobhan and Abuelezam, Nadia and Eckert, Natalie and Shervin Assari} } @article {8852, title = {Sustained Obesity and Depressive Symptoms over 6 Years: Race by Gender Differences in the Health and Retirement Study.}, journal = {Front Aging Neurosci}, volume = {8}, year = {2016}, month = {2016}, pages = {312}, abstract = {

Although obesity and physical activity influence psychosocial well-being, these effects may vary based on race, gender, and their intersection. Using 6-year follow-up data of a nationally representative sample of adults over age of 50 in the United States, this study aimed to explore race by gender differences in additive effects of sustained high body mass index (BMI) and physical activity on sustained depressive symptoms (CES-D) and self-rated health (SRH). Data came from waves 7, 8, and 10 (2004-2010) of the Health and Retirement Study (HRS), an ongoing national cohort started in 1992. The study enrolled a representative sample of Americans ( = 19,280) over the age of 50. Latent factors were used to calculate sustained high BMI and physical activity (predictors) and sustained poor SRH and high depressive symptoms (outcomes) based on measurements in 2004, 2006, and 2010. Age, education, and income were confounders. Multi-group structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to test the additive effects of BMI and physical activity on depressive symptoms and SRH, where the groups were defined based on race by gender. Group differences were apparent in the direction and significance of the association between sustained high BMI and depressive symptoms. The association between sustained high BMI and depressive symptoms was positive and significant for White women ( = 0.03, = 0.007) and non-significant for White men ( = -0.03, = 0.062), Black men ( = -0.02, = 0.564) and Black women ( = 0.03, = 0.110). No group differences were found in the paths from sustained physical activity to depressive symptoms, or from physical activity or BMI to SRH. Sustained high BMI and high depressive symptoms after age 50 are positively associated only for White women. As the association between sustained health problems such as depression and obesity are not universal across race and gender groups, clinical and public health interventions and programs that simultaneously target multiple health problems may have differential effects across race by gender groups.

}, issn = {1663-4365}, doi = {10.3389/fnagi.2016.00312}, url = {https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5209386/}, author = {Julia D. Carter and Shervin Assari} }