The moderating effect of functional social support on the association between unfair treatment and self-rated health: A study of the resilience of a community-based sample of Irish migrants in London

2018 ◽  
Vol 26 (3) ◽  
pp. 267-288
Author(s):  
Jeff Moore ◽  
Mary Tilki ◽  
Lisa Clarke ◽  
Eugene Waters

Despite research demonstrating the health promoting effects of social support, few studies have examined the moderating effect of functional social support on everyday unfair treatment for migrant communities. This study investigates whether functional social support moderates the association between unfair treatment and poor self-rated health for Irish migrants to the UK. Analysis of a purposive sample of Irish migrants in London was conducted ( n = 790). Interaction was analyzed via hierarchical logistic regression. Irish migrants who perceived unfair treatment were over three times more likely to report fair/poor health (odds ratio = 3.47, 95% confidence interval = 2.0–6.02). Higher levels of support in times of crisis were associated with reduced poor health. Higher levels of instrumental or practical support from neighbors moderated against the negative effect of unfair treatment on self-rated health (odds ratio = 0.29, 95% confidence interval = 0.08–0.96) and had a protective stabilizing effect. Instrumental support may have a protective-enhancing effect for female migrants. Results support other studies which indicate that instrumental support is most influential in the context of adversity. Interventions that promote neighborhood social capital may build resilience to unfair treatment for migrant communities in large cities.

Cephalalgia ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 033310242110203
Author(s):  
Maria Lurenda Westergaard ◽  
Cathrine Juel Lau ◽  
Karen Allesøe ◽  
Anne Helms Andreasen ◽  
Rigmor Højland Jensen

Objective To explore the prevalence of poor social support and loneliness among people with chronic headache, and how these might be effect modifiers in the relationships between chronic headache and stress, medication overuse, and self-rated health. Background Poor social support and loneliness are consistently linked to worse health outcomes. There are few epidemiologic studies on their effect on headache. Methods The Danish Capital Region Health Survey, a cross-sectional survey, was conducted in 2017. Participants were asked about headache, pain medication use, social support, loneliness, perceived stress, and self-rated health. Data were accessed from sociodemographic registers. Logistic regression analyses were performed to test for effect modification. Results The response rate was 52.6% (55,185 respondents) and was representative of the target population. People with chronic headache were more likely to report poor social support and loneliness compared to those without chronic headache ( p < 0.0001 for both). Odds ratios for the combination of chronic headache and poor social support were very high for stress (odds ratio 8.1), medication overuse (odds ratio 21.9), and poor self-rated health (odds ratio 10.2) compared to those without chronic headache and with good social support. Those who reported both chronic headache and loneliness had a very high odds ratio for stress (odds ratio 14.4), medication overuse (odds ratio 20.1), and poor self-rated health (odds ratio 15.9) compared to those without chronic headache and low loneliness score. When adjusted for sociodemographic factors, poor social support and loneliness were not significant effect modifiers in almost all these associations. Loneliness was a significant effect modifier in the association between chronic headache and medication overuse, but exerted greater effect among those who did not report they were lonely. Conclusion Poor social support and loneliness were prevalent among people with chronic headache. The combination of chronic headache and poor social support or loneliness showed higher odds ratios for stress, medication overuse, and poor self-rated health compared to those with good social support and low loneliness scores. The effect of loneliness in the relationship between chronic headache and medication overuse warrants further study.


2010 ◽  
Vol 42 (3) ◽  
pp. 409-424 ◽  
Author(s):  
SANG-SIK MOON ◽  
SANG-MI PARK ◽  
SUNG-IL CHO

SummaryThis study investigated gender difference in the effects of social support, including emotional support and instrumental support (such as help when sick and financial assistance), and social activities on perceived health of middle-aged and older adults in South Korea. Data were acquired from 3771 men and 4954 women aged 40 years and older who participated in the 2005 cross-sectional survey of the Seoul Citizens Health and Social Indicators Survey. Using multiple regression analysis, both age- and gender-specific differences related to social support and engagement in social activities and self-rated poor health were examined. Poor emotional support from close friends, relatives or someone with whom one could talk about worries was strongly associated with poor self-rated health in men, with the greatest effect in older men. Lack of engagement in social activities was associated with self-rated poor health in older adults, especially in older men. Poor instrumental support was associated with perceived poor health only in middle-aged women. As a health improvement strategy for men aged 65 years and older especially, emotional support should be considered. Measures should be considered for encouraging social activities by older adults, particularly older men.


2021 ◽  
pp. 1-17
Author(s):  
Jon Barrenetxea ◽  
Yi Yang ◽  
Kyriakos S. Markides ◽  
An Pan ◽  
Woon-Puay Koh ◽  
...  

Abstract While having social support can contribute to better health, those in poor health may be limited in their capacity to receive social support. We studied the health factors associated with social support among community-dwelling older adults in Singapore. We used data from the third follow-up interviews (2014–2016) of 16,943 participants of the Singapore Chinese Health Study, a population-based cohort of older Singapore Chinese. Participants were interviewed at a mean age of 73 years (range 61–96 years) using the Duke Social Support Scale (DUSOCS). We first applied ordinary least squares regression to DUSOCS scores and found that those with instrumental limitations, poor self-rated health, cognitive impairment and depression had lower social support scores. We then applied latent class analysis to DUSOCS answer patterns and revealed four groups of older adults based on the source and amount of social support. Among them, compared to the ‘overall supported’ group (17%) with the highest social support scores and broad support from family members and non-family individuals, the ‘family restricted’ (50%) group had the lowest social support scores and only received support from children. Health factors associated with being ‘family restricted’ were instrumental limitations (odds ratio (OR) = 1.33, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.19–1.49), poor self-rated health (OR = 1.40, 95% CI = 1.28–1.53), cognitive impairment (OR = 1.19, 95% CI = 1.04–1.37) and depression (OR = 2.50, 95% CI = 2.22–2.82). We found that while older adults in poor health have lower social support scores, they were more likely to receive a lot of support from children. Our results showed that lower social support scores among Singaporean older adults in poor health may not indicate lack of social support, but rather that social support is restricted in scope and intensified around children. These results may apply to other Asian societies where family plays a central role in elder-care.


Author(s):  
Fan Yang ◽  
Yao Jiang

Employing a national representative survey (the China Labor-force Dynamics Survey 2016, CLDS2016) data (N = 14246), this paper examines the heterogeneous influences of social support on individual physical and mental health in China. Social support is characterized by four dimensions: emotional support, tangible or instrumental support, interaction or exchange support, and community support. Physical health is measured by self-rated health and body mass index (BMI), while mental health is measured by depression, hopelessness, failure, fear, loneliness, and meaninglessness. The results indicate that different dimensions of social support have heterogeneous effects on individual physical and mental health. Specifically, the correlation between emotional support and individual physical health is not significant, but emotional support is significantly related to some mental health variables. Tangible or instrumental support is significantly related to individual self-rated physical health but not to BMI or mental health. Interaction or exchange support is significantly correlated with individual self-rated health and some mental health variables. In general, there are significant correlations between community support, and individual physical and mental health. The results also suggest that the influences of social support on physical and mental health of individuals at different ages (<60 years and ≥60 years) are heterogeneous. The results of this study provide direction for the dimension selection of social support to promote individual health.


2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (Supplement_4) ◽  
Author(s):  
I Backhaus ◽  
S Kino ◽  
G La Torre ◽  
I Kawachi

Abstract Background Individuals who hew to a conservative political ideology have been previously reported to have better self-rated health compared to liberals. No studies have examined whether the correlation between right-wing ideology and health also holds for populism, a brand of politics that is gaining momentum throughout the world. We tested whether the association still holds for right-wing populists. Methods We analysed data from 24617 respondents nested within 18 European countries included in the 2016 European Social Survey. Multilevel analyses were conducted to assess the relationship between political ideology and self-rated health, adjusting for other individual covariates (happiness and social capital) and country-level characteristics (democracy type). Results Individuals who voted for right-wing populist parties were 43% more likely to report fair/poor health compared to traditional conservatives (OR = 1.43, 95% confidence interval 1.23 to 1.67). The association was attenuated after controlling for individual-level variables, including happiness and access to social capital (OR = 1.21, confidence interval 1.03 to 1.42). Higher levels of social capital (informal networks, OR = 0.40, 95% confidence interval 0.29 to 0.56; trust, OR = 0.82, 95% confidence interval 0.74 to 0.92) and happiness (OR = 0.18, 95% confidence interval 0.15 to 0.22) were protectively correlated with fair/poor self-rated health. Conclusions Individuals voting for right-wing populist parties report worse health compared to conservatives. It remains unclear whether ideology is just a marker for health-related practices, or whether the values and beliefs associated with a particular brand of ideology leads to worse health. Key messages There is a significant association between voting for right-wing populist parties and self-rated poor health. Social capital was protectively correlated with self-rated health calling for renewed attention on the effects of social capital on political ideology and health.


Sexual Health ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 285 ◽  
Author(s):  
Huamei Yan ◽  
Frank Y. Wong ◽  
Tony Zheng ◽  
Zhen Ning ◽  
Yingying Ding ◽  
...  

The primary objective was to examine prevalence and correlates of social support and depressive symptoms among male sex workers (known as ‘money boys’ (MBs)) and general men who have sex with men (MSM) in Shanghai. The Social Provision Scale (SPS), which consists of 24 items, scored out of 4 for social provision, was used to evaluate the functions of social relationships. The score for each item ranges from 1 to 4, with a higher score indicating more social provision. The overall mean SPS score was 68.1 (s.d. = 6.53) for MBs and 69.3 (s.d. = 6.99) for general MSM. Depression was measured with a 12-item version of the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale (CES-D), where a score of 9 has been recommended as the cutoff score to indicate possible depressive symptoms. The prevalence of depressive symptoms was 57.9%, with MBs having a higher level of depressive symptoms than general MSM (70.0% v. 46.1%) (odds ratio = 1.86, 95% confidence interval = 1.07–3.24). Social support was a protective factor for depressive symptoms (odds ratio = 0.92, 95% confidence interval = 0.89–0.96). MSM in China, particularly MBs, are vulnerable to low social support and high depressive symptoms, highlighting the need for tailored psychological programs targeting this population.


Author(s):  
Qiao Qin ◽  
Fangfang Fan ◽  
Jia Jia ◽  
Yan Zhang ◽  
Bo Zheng

Abstract Purpose An increase in arterial stiffness is associated with rapid renal function decline (RFD) in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD). The aim of this study was to investigate whether the radial augmentation index (rAI), a surrogate marker of arterial stiffness, affects RFD in individuals without CKD. Methods A total of 3165 Chinese participants from an atherosclerosis cohort with estimated glomerular filtration rates (eGFR) of ≥ 60 mL/min/1.73 m2 were included in this study. The baseline rAI normalized to a heart rate of 75 beats/min (rAIp75) was obtained using an arterial applanation tonometry probe. The eGFRs at both baseline and follow-up were calculated using the equation derived from the Chronic Kidney Disease Epidemiology Collaboration. The association of the rAIp75 with RFD (defined as a drop in the eGFR category accompanied by a ≥ 25% drop in eGFR from baseline or a sustained decline in eGFR of > 5 mL/min/1.73 m2/year) was evaluated using the multivariate regression model. Results During the 2.35-year follow-up, the incidence of RFD was 7.30%. The rAIp75 had no statistically independent association with RFD after adjustment for possible confounders (adjusted odds ratio = 1.12, 95% confidence interval: 0.99–1.27, p = 0.074). When stratified according to sex, the rAIp75 was significantly associated with RFD in women, but not in men (adjusted odds ratio and 95% confidence interval: 1.23[1.06–1.43], p = 0.007 for women, 0.94[0.76–1.16], p = 0.542 for men; p for interaction = 0.038). Conclusion The rAI might help screen for those at high risk of early rapid RFD in women without CKD.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Francisco Félix Caballero ◽  
Ellen A. Struijk ◽  
Alberto Lana ◽  
Antonio Buño ◽  
Fernando Rodríguez-Artalejo ◽  
...  

AbstractElevated concentrations of acylcarnitines have been associated with higher risk of obesity, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. The aim of the present study was to assess the association between L-carnitine and acylcarnitine profiles, and 2-year risk of incident lower-extremity functional impairment (LEFI). This case–control study is nested in the Seniors-ENRICA cohort of community-dwelling older adults, which included 43 incident cases of LEFI and 86 age- and sex- matched controls. LEFI was assessed with the Short Physical Performance Battery. Plasma L-carnitine and 28 acylcarnitine species were measured. After adjusting for potential confounders, medium-chain acylcarnitines levels were associated with 2-year incidence of LEFI [odds ratio per 1-SD increase: 1.69; 95% confidence interval: 1.08, 2.64; p = 0.02]. Similar results were observed for long-chain acylcarnitines [odds ratio per 1-SD increase: 1.70; 95% confidence interval: 1.03, 2.80; p = 0.04]. Stratified analyses showed a stronger association between medium- and long-chain acylcarnitines and incidence of LEFI among those with body mass index and energy intake below the median value. In conclusion, higher plasma concentrations of medium- and long-chain acylcarnitines were associated with higher risk of LEFI. Given the role of these molecules on mitochondrial transport of fatty acids, our results suggest that bioenergetics dysbalance contributes to LEFI.


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