Immigration background and adolescent mental health problems: the role of family affluence, adolescent educational level and gender

Abstract Background Healthy lifestyles may contribute to better mental health, which is particularly important in adolescence, an age at which half of all mental health problems first occur. This association may be even more relevant in adolescents of low family affluence, who show more mental health problems, as well as more unhealthy lifestyles. This study investigated the healthy lifestyle behaviors, namely sufficient sleep and physical activity, daily breakfast intake, low levels of alcohol use or smoking, in relation to mental health and mental health problems (feelings of depression, anxiety, stress and self-esteem) among adolescents from different family affluence. Furthermore, the moderating role of family affluence was examined in those relations.Methods Adolescents aged 12-18y were recruited via a random sample of schools. A total of 1037 adolescents participated (M age=15.2, 49.8% female). Multiple linear regression analyses assessed the association between healthy lifestyles and mental health outcomes and the moderating role of family affluence.Results All healthy lifestyle behaviors were associated with at least one mental health outcome. Adolescents from low-medium family affluence had lower levels of physical activity, less often took breakfast, and reported lower self-esteem than adolescents from high family affluence. The results only showed a moderating effect of family affluence for smoking in relation to stress: at low levels of smoking, high family affluence youngsters experienced more stress symptoms than low-medium family affluence youth. At high levels of smoking, low-medium family affluence youth, however, experienced more stress symptoms than high family affluence youth.Conclusion These findings support the value of integrating healthy lifestyle behaviors in interventions for mental health promotion, for both youth of low-medium and high family affluence.

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Adolescent Socioeconomic Status and Mental Health Inequalities in the Netherlands, 2001–2017

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph16193605 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 16 (19) ◽

pp. 3605 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Dominic Weinberg ◽

Gonneke W. J. M. Stevens ◽

Elisa L. Duinhof ◽

Catrin Finkenauer

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Socioeconomic Status ◽

Life Satisfaction ◽

Educational Level ◽

Mental Health Problems ◽

Adolescent Mental Health ◽

Health Problems ◽

Socioeconomic Inequalities ◽

Negatively Associated ◽

Subjective Ses

Even in wealthy countries there are substantial socioeconomic inequalities in adolescent mental health. Socioeconomic status (SES) indicators—parental SES, adolescent subjective SES and adolescent educational level—are negatively associated with adolescent mental health problems, but little is known about the interplay between these SES indicators and whether associations have changed over time. Using data from the Dutch Health Behaviour in School-Aged Children (HBSC) studies (n = 27,020) between 2001 and 2017, we examined associations between three SES indicators and six indicators of adolescent mental health problems. Linear regressions revealed that adolescent subjective SES and adolescent educational level were independently negatively associated with adolescent mental health problems and positively associated with adolescent life satisfaction, but parental SES had negligible independent associations with adolescent mental health problems and life satisfaction. However, when interactions between SES indicators were considered, high adolescent subjective SES was shown to buffer the negative association between parental SES and adolescent mental health problems and the positive association between parental SES and life satisfaction. Despite societal changes between 2001 and 2017, socioeconomic inequalities in adolescent mental health were stable during this period. Findings suggest that all three SES indicators—parental SES, adolescent subjective SES and adolescent educational level—are important for studying socioeconomic inequalities in adolescent mental health.

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The association of healthy lifestyle behaviors with mental health indicators among adolescents of different family affluence

10.21203/rs.2.19641/v2 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Laura Maenhout ◽

Carmen Peuters ◽

Greet Cardon ◽

Sofie Compernolle New ◽

Geert Crombez ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Mental Health Problems ◽

Healthy Lifestyle ◽

Health Indicators ◽

Health Problems ◽

Lifestyle Behaviors ◽

Family Affluence ◽

Healthy Lifestyle Behaviors ◽

Moderating Role

Abstract Background Healthy lifestyles may contribute to better mental health, which is particularly important in adolescence, an age at which half of all mental health problems first occur. This association may be even more relevant in adolescents of low family affluence, who show more mental health problems, as well as more unhealthy lifestyles. This study investigated healthy lifestyle behaviors, namely sufficient sleep and physical activity, daily breakfast intake, low levels of alcohol use or smoking, in relation to mental health and symptoms of mental health problems (feelings of depression, anxiety, stress and self-esteem) among adolescents from different family affluence. Furthermore, the moderating role of family affluence was examined in those relations. Methods Adolescents aged 12-18y were recruited via a random sample of schools in Flanders, Belgium. A total of 1037 adolescents participated (M age=15.2, 49.8% female). Independent samples t-tests, Mann Whitney U-tests and χ²-tests determined the differences in healthy lifestyle behaviors and mental health indicators between adolescents of low-medium and high family affluence. Regression analyses assessed the association between healthy lifestyles and mental health outcomes and the moderating role of family affluence. Results All healthy lifestyle behaviors were associated with at least one mental health outcome, with the exception of alcohol consumption. Adolescents from low-medium family affluence had lower levels of physical activity, less often took breakfast, had lower levels of alcohol consumption and reported lower self-esteem than adolescents from high family affluence. The results showed no moderating effect of family affluence for the association between healthy lifestyle and mental health . Conclusion These findings support the value of integrating healthy lifestyle behaviors in interventions for mental health promotion, for both youth of low-medium and high family affluence.

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