scholarly journals LONELINESS PREDICTS REDUCTIONS IN SLEEP QUALITY IN OLDER AMERICANS

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S529-S529
Author(s):  
Sarah Griffin ◽  
Baylor Williams ◽  
Scott Ravyts ◽  
Joseph Dzierzewski ◽  
Bruce Rybarczyk

Abstract Research documenting loneliness as a factor predicting health decline accumulates, yet the mechanisms underlying this relationship remain obscure. A potential mechanism is sleep disturbance, which is associated with loneliness. However, it remains unclear whether loneliness is a risk factor for subsequent sleep disturbance. The present study aimed to examine loneliness (measured via the Hughes Loneliness Scale) as a risk factor for sleep disturbance in a nationally representative sample of older (>65) Americans. Weighted linear regressions (accounting for complex sampling) were conducted on data from the Health and Retirement Study (n=3,042; 2006 & 2012 waves). Higher levels of loneliness in 2006 predicted sleep disturbance in 2014 when controlling for baseline sleep (B=.08, 95% confidence interval [CI]=[.04, .13]). This association remained after controlling for age, gender, race, ethnicity, education, net worth, and depressive symptoms (B=.07, 95% CI=[.04, .11]). These results identify loneliness as a risk factor for sleep disturbance over an eight-year span in older Americans. Further research is necessary to tease apart this relationship: specifically, to assess reciprocal effects over multiple timepoints, investigate the role of depression in loneliness and sleep disturbance, and employ experimental methods to address causality.

2019 ◽  
Vol 32 (9) ◽  
pp. 1156-1164 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah C. Griffin ◽  
Allison Baylor Williams ◽  
Samantha N. Mladen ◽  
Paul B. Perrin ◽  
Joseph M. Dzierzewski ◽  
...  

Objectives: To model the relationship between loneliness and sleep disturbance over time. Method: Data came from the Health and Retirement Study (2006, 2010, 2014 waves; age ≥ 65 years; n = 5,067). Loneliness was measured via the Hughes Loneliness Scale and sleep disturbance via a four-item scale assessing sleep and restedness. Cross-lagged panel modeling (path analysis) was used to jointly examine reciprocal effects between loneliness and sleep disturbance. Results: Higher loneliness correlated with higher sleep disturbance at baseline. There was evidence of reciprocal effects between loneliness and sleep across timepoints. These associations overall remained when accounting for demographics, objective isolation, and depression. Discussion: Although causality cannot be established, the findings indicate that the relationship between loneliness and sleep disturbance is bidirectional. This requires revision to the current theory on sleep disturbance as a mechanism for the relationship between loneliness and health and indicates that effective treatment of sleep disturbance may reduce loneliness.


2015 ◽  
Vol 28 (5) ◽  
pp. 741-747 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liat Ayalon

ABSTRACTBackground:Falls are highly frequent in older adults and are associated with increased morbidity and mortality. The present study was designed to assess the role of satisfaction with one's aging process as a predictor of the risk for falling over a four-year period and to identify potential mediators of this relationship.Methods:The Health and Retirement Study (HRS) is a US nationally representative sample of individuals over the age of 50 years and their spouse of any age. The present study was based on the 2008–2012 waves of the HRS. Analyses were restricted to 4,121 respondents over the age of 50 years, who had fall data in 2008 and 2012 and were eligible to complete the satisfaction with aging measure as part of the 2008 psychosocial questionnaire.Results:Overall, 38.1% of the sample reported having fallen at least once between 2006 and 2008 and 40.7% reported having fallen at least once between 2010 and 2012. Higher levels of satisfaction with aging in 2008 were found to be protective against falls assessed in 2012 (OR[95%CI] = 0.88[0.79–0.98]) even after adjustment for age, gender, education, ethnicity, medical status, functional status, cognitive functioning, walking speed, balance, vision, depressive symptoms, physical activities, and past falls. Bootstrap procedures have shown that the effect of satisfaction with aging on falls is partially accounted for through its effect on functional decline.Conclusions:The findings point to the important role of satisfaction with aging as a potential protective mechanism against falls. The results call for the development of psychosocial interventions to reduce falls in older adults.


2009 ◽  
Vol 22 (3) ◽  
pp. 455-462 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sharon Shiovitz-Ezra ◽  
Liat Ayalon

ABSTRACTBackground: Several international studies have substantiated the role of loneliness as a risk factor for mortality. Although both theoretical and empirical research has supported the classification of loneliness as either situational or chronic, research to date has not evaluated whether this classification has a differential impact upon mortality.Methods: To establish the definition of situational vs. chronic loneliness, we used three waves of the Health and Retirement Study (HRS), a nationally representative sample of Americans over the age of 50 years. Baseline data for the present study were collected in the years 1996, 1998, and 2000. The present study concerns the 7,638 individuals who completed all three waves; their loneliness was classified as either not lonely, situational loneliness or chronic loneliness. Mortality data were available through to the year 2004.Results: Those identified as “situationally lonely” (HR = 1.56; 95% CI: 1.52–1.62) as well as those identified as “chronically lonely” (HR = 1.83; 95% CI: 1.71–1.87) had a greater risk for all cause mortality net of the effect of possible demographic and health confounders. Nonetheless, relative to those classified as “situationally lonely,” individuals classified as “chronically lonely” had a slightly greater mortality risk.Conclusions: The current study emphasizes the important role loneliness plays in older adults’ health. The study further supports current division into situational vs. chronic loneliness, yet suggests that both types serve as substantial mortality risks.


2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S330-S331
Author(s):  
Hyunju Shim ◽  
Jennifer A Ailshire ◽  
Eileen Crimmins

Abstract Technology may offer one approach to reducing depression as it provides medium to maintain connections (Cotton et al., 2014). Yet, depression, internet use, gender roles, and expectation of intergenerational interaction all differ across countries. Using nationally representative data from the U.S (Health and Retirement Study: HRS) and South Korea (Living Profiles of Older People Survey: LPOPS), the study examines 1) association between internet use and depressive symptoms by gender in two countries; 2) and whether intergenerational factors moderated this association. In the U.S., more than half of men and women aged 65+ used the internet, while approximately 30% of women and 47% of men used the internet in Korea. Using the internet was associated with lower depression for those living far from the closest child for women in the U.S., and for men in Korea. The findings indicate that the association of internet use on depressive symptoms can be influenced by intergenerational factors that may differentially affect men and women depending on the sociohistorical contexts.


2020 ◽  
Vol 16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giulia Pinna ◽  
Lavinia Sanfilippo ◽  
Pier Paolo Bassareo ◽  
Vassilios Fanos ◽  
Maria Antonietta Marcialis

: This paper examines the potential link between COVID-19 and the presence of comorbidities and assesses the role of inflammation in this correlation. In COVID-19 patients, the most frequently associated diseases share a pathogenic inflammatory basis and apparently act as a risk factor in the onset of a more severe form of the disease, particularly in adulthood. However, in children, the understanding of the underlying pathogenic mechanisms is often complicated by the milder symptoms presented. A series of theories have therefore been put forward with a view of providing a better understanding of the role played by inflammation in this dramatic setting. All evidence available to date on this topic is discussed in this review.


2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kaicheng Li ◽  
Xiao Luo ◽  
Qingze Zeng ◽  
Yerfan Jiaerken ◽  
Shuyue Wang ◽  
...  

AbstractThough sleep disturbance constitutes the risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease (AD), the underlying mechanism is still unclear. This study aims to explore the interaction between sleep disturbances and AD on brain function. We included 192 normal controls, 111 mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and 30 AD patients, with either poor or normal sleep (PS, NS, respectively). To explore the strength and stability of brain activity, we used static amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation (sALFF) and dynamic ALFF (dALFF) variance. Further, we examined white matter hyperintensities (WMH) and amyloid PET deposition, representing the vascular risk factor and AD-related hallmark, respectively. We observed that sleep disturbance significantly interacted with disease severity, exposing distinct effects on sALFF and dALFF variance. Interestingly, PS groups showed the dALFF variance trajectory of initially increased, then decreased and finally increased along the AD spectrum, while showing the opposite trajectory of sALFF. Further correlation analysis showed that the WMH burden correlates with dALFF variance in PS groups. Conclusively, our study suggested that sleep disturbance interacts with AD severity, expressing as effects of compensatory in MCI and de-compensatory in AD, respectively. Further, vascular impairment might act as important pathogenesis underlying the interaction effect between sleep and AD.


2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (18) ◽  
pp. 4416 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lara Console ◽  
Maria Tolomeo ◽  
Matilde Colella ◽  
Maria Barile ◽  
Cesare Indiveri

Background: the SLC52A2 gene encodes for the riboflavin transporter 2 (RFVT2). This transporter is ubiquitously expressed. It mediates the transport of Riboflavin across cell membranes. Riboflavin plays a crucial role in cells since its biologically active forms, FMN and FAD, are essential for the metabolism of carbohydrates, amino acids, and lipids. Mutation of the Riboflavin transporters is a risk factor for anemia, cancer, cardiovascular disease, neurodegeneration. Inborn mutations of SLC52A2 are associated with Brown-Vialetto-van Laere syndrome, a rare neurological disorder characterized by infancy onset. In spite of the important metabolic and physio/pathological role of this transporter few data are available on its function and regulation. Methods: the human recombinant RFVT2 has been overexpressed in E. coli, purified and reconstituted into proteoliposomes in order to characterize its activity following the [3H]Riboflavin transport. Results: the recombinant hRFVT2 showed a Km of 0.26 ± 0.07 µM and was inhibited by lumiflavin, FMN and Mg2+. The Riboflavin uptake was also regulated by Ca2+. The native protein extracted from fibroblast and reconstituted in proteoliposomes also showed inhibition by FMN and lumiflavin. Conclusions: proteoliposomes represent a suitable model to assay the RFVT2 function. It will be useful for screening the mutation of RFVT2.


Author(s):  
Ana P. Sehn ◽  
Anelise R. Gaya ◽  
Caroline Brand ◽  
Arieli F. Dias ◽  
Roya Kelishadi ◽  
...  

AbstractObjectivesThe combination of sleep duration, television (TV) time and body mass index (BMI) may be related to the alteration of cardiometabolic risk. However, there are few studies that use these variables grouped, and showing the moderating role of age. This study aimed to verify if the combination of sleep duration, TV time and BMI is associated with cardiometabolic risk and the moderating role of age in this relationship in youth.MethodsCross-sectional study conducted with 1411 adolescents (611 male), aged 10–17 years. Sleep duration, TV time and BMI were assessed and grouped into eight categories. Cardiometabolic risk was assessed by a continuous metabolic risk score, including the following variables: low HDL-cholesterol, elevated triglycerides, dysglycemia, high systolic blood pressure, high waist circumference and low cardiorespiratory fitness. Generalized linear models were used to test moderation of age in the relationship between the eight categories of sleep duration/television time/BMI with cardiometabolic risk.ResultsCardiometabolic risk factor showed association with all overweight or obesity independent of sleep time and TV time. Age moderated the relationship between sleep duration/television time/BMI with cardiometabolic risk. This association was stronger in younger adolescents (11 and 13 years), indicating that individuals with inadequate sleep, prolonged TV time and overweight/obesity present higher cardiometabolic risk values when compared to 15-year-old adolescents.ConclusionOverweight/obesity, independently of sleep duration and TV time, is the main risk factor for cardiometabolic disorders in adolescence. When moderated by age, younger adolescents that presented the combination of risk factors had higher cardiometabolic risk.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (9) ◽  
pp. 5024
Author(s):  
 Vítor Manuel de Sousa Gabriel ◽  
María Mar Miralles-Quirós ◽  
José Luis Miralles-Quirós

This paper analyses the links established between environmental indices and the oil price adopting a double perspective, long-term and short-term relationships. For that purpose, we employ the Bounds Test and bivariate conditional heteroscedasticity models. In the long run, the pattern of behaviour of environmental indices clearly differed from that of the oil prices, and it was not possible to identify cointegrating vectors. In the short-term, it was possible to conclude that, in contemporaneous terms, the variables studied tended to follow similar paths. When the lag of the oil price variable was considered, the impacts produced on the stock market sectors were partially of a negative nature, which allows us to suppose that this variable plays the role of a risk factor for environmental investment.


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