The impact of family members on the self-reported health of older men and women in a rural area of Bangladesh

2004 ◽  
Vol 24 (6) ◽  
pp. 903-920 ◽  
Author(s):  
OMAR RAHMAN ◽  
JANE MENKEN ◽  
RANDALL KUHN

The purpose of this study is to examine whether the co-residence of spouses and children affects self-reported general health among older men and women in a rural area of Bangladesh. Binary logistic regression has been used to explore the impact of spouses and children on self-reported health, with particular attention to the gender of children and interactions with chronic disease. The data are from the Matlab Health and Socio-Economic Survey. A sample of 765 women and 979 men aged 60 or more years with at least one surviving child was available. The principal result is that for an older woman, optimum self-reported health is most likely when a spouse and at least one son and one daughter are present. Any deviation from this family pattern (either no spouse or children of only one sex) leads to a significantly increased risk of poor self-reported health. On the other hand, among older men there were no differences in self-reported health among the various spouse-child combinations. The relationship between a balanced gender distribution of children and optimum self-reported health among older women may explain the levelling out of fertility at roughly three children per women despite intensive family planning promotion in the area. Further reductions in fertility (an important policy concern) may depend on improving the substitutability of sons and daughters in the support of their elderly mothers.

2019 ◽  
Vol 54 (1) ◽  
pp. 1802175 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mathias Baumert ◽  
Dominik Linz ◽  
Katie Stone ◽  
R. Doug McEvoy ◽  
Steve Cummings ◽  
...  

Respiratory frequency (fR) predicts in-hospital and short-term mortality in patients with a variety of pathophysiological conditions, but its predictive value for long-term cardiovascular and all-cause mortality in the general population is unknown. Here, we investigated the relationship between mean nocturnal fR and mortality in community-dwelling older men and women.We measured mean nocturnal fR during sleep from overnight polysomnography in 2686 men participating in the Osteoporotic Fractures in Men Study (MrOS) Sleep study and 406 women participating in the Study of Osteoporotic Fractures (SOF) to investigate the relationship between mean nocturnal fR and long-term cardiovascular and all-cause mortality.166 (6.1%) men in the MrOS cohort (8.9±2.6 years’ follow-up) and 46 (11.2%) women in the SOF cohort (6.4±1.6 years’ follow-up) died from cardiovascular disease. All-cause mortality was 51.2% and 26.1% during 13.7±3.7 and 6.4±1.6 years’ follow-up in the MrOS Sleep study and the SOF cohorts, respectively. Multivariable Cox regression analysis adjusted for significant covariates demonstrated that fR dichotomised at 16 breaths·min−1 was independently associated with cardiovascular mortality (MrOS: hazard ratio (HR) 1.57, 95% CI 1.14–2.15; p=0.005; SOF: HR 2.58, 95% CI 1.41–4.76; p=0.002) and all-cause mortality (MrOS: HR 1.18, 95% CI 1.04–1.32; p=0.007; SOF: HR 1.50, 95% CI 1.02–2.20; p=0.04).In community-dwelling older men and women, polysomnography-derived mean nocturnal fR ≥16 breaths·min−1 is an independent predictor of long-term cardiovascular and all-cause mortality. Whether nocturnal mean fR can be used as a risk marker warrants further prospective studies.


2020 ◽  
Vol 4 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tess Moeke-Maxwell ◽  
Linda Waimarie Nikora ◽  
Kathleen Mason ◽  
Melissa Carey

New Zealand responded swiftly to the Covid-19 Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) to prevent the spread of sickness and prevent unnecessary deaths. The government initiated a four-level social distancing alert system with specified measures at each level to manage and minimise the risk of COVID-19. By late March 2020, Alert Level 4 required people to stay in their homes in their ‘bubbles’ or family units. Social contact was restricted other than for essential personal movement and travel was severely limited. The Ministry of Health (2020) produced tangihanga (funeral rituals) policy guidelines for Māori, requiring the immediate collection of the deceased’s body by a funeral director. Gatherings to do with death and post-death customs were severely restricted and all marae (indigenous gathering places, land, buildings) were closed and burials could only include the immediate family bubble. In this autoethnographic paper, we draw on one Māori family’s experience of the birth and death of a baby with an anticipated life-limiting illness, during the most restrictive lockdown phase, level 4. We describe the impact COVID-19 tangihanga policy restrictions had on the family. The guidelines prevented them from conducting timely customary internment rituals with support from kaumātua (older men and women) and whānau (family including extended family and friends) in accordance with their cultural preferences. To prepare for future pandemics we recommend mana whenua (local Māori who have authority over their lands and marae) have autonomy to plan and manage tangihanga to avoid unnecessary distress, particularly where there is a known palliative condition.


Author(s):  
Zi Zhou ◽  
Fanzhen Mao ◽  
Wei Zhang ◽  
Samuel D. Towne ◽  
Ping Wang ◽  
...  

We aimed to investigate the association between loneliness and cognitive impairment among older men and women in China. Data for 6898 eligible participants aged 65 years and older were derived from the latest two waves (2008/2009 and 2011/2012) of the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey. A logistic regression analysis was performed to determine whether the association between loneliness at baseline and the risk of cognitive impairment at follow-up varied by sex, with adjustment for social-demographic variables, social isolation, lifestyles, and health status. The rates of baseline loneliness and follow-up cognitive impairment were both higher among women than men. Loneliness at baseline was significantly associated with cognitive impairment at follow-up among elderly men (OR = 1.30; 95% CI 1.01–1.69), even after adjusting for potential confounding variables; however, a similar association was not observed among elderly women (OR = 0.98; 95% CI 0.81–1.19). Multiple imputations were applied to address missing data. Although elderly women more frequently reported feelings of loneliness, the impact of loneliness on cognitive impairment was significant among elderly men but not elderly women. Interventions designed to decrease the incidence of loneliness may be particularly beneficial for the reduction of cognitive impairment among elderly Chinese men.


1993 ◽  
Vol 41 (5) ◽  
pp. 523-530 ◽  
Author(s):  
Molly T. Vogt ◽  
Matthew McKenna ◽  
Stewart J. Anderson ◽  
Sidney K. Wolfson ◽  
Lewis H. Kuller

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