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Citation

Shartle, Kaitlin; Yang, Yang Claire; Richman, Laura Smart; Belsky, Daniel W.; Aiello, Allison E.; & Harris, Kathleen Mullan (2022). Social Relationships, Wealth, and Cardiometabolic Risk: Evidence from a National Longitudinal Study of U.S. Older Adults. Journal of Aging and Health, 34(6-8), 1048-1061. PMCID: PMC9489644

Abstract

Objectives: To investigate multiple dimensions of social relationships related to biomarkers of cardiometabolic health and how their associations vary by wealth in older adults.
Methods: Growth curve models were used to investigate the longitudinal associations between measures of both positive and negative social relationships and cardiometabolic risk (CMR) over a 10-year period from 2006 to 2016 and the moderation of this association by wealth in the Health and Retirement Study (HRS).
Results: Older adults with better social relationships had lower CMR on average. The protective effects of positive social relationships, however, waned at older ages, particularly for low-wealth individuals.
Discussion: Our results suggest that good social relationships promote healthy aging by buffering against harmful cardiometabolic consequences of psychosocial stress, particularly among relatively wealthy individuals. Efforts to improve old age health would be more effective when focusing simultaneously on fostering social connections and boosting financial resources.

URL

http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/08982643221087807

Reference Type

Journal Article

Year Published

2022

Journal Title

Journal of Aging and Health

Author(s)

Shartle, Kaitlin
Yang, Yang Claire
Richman, Laura Smart
Belsky, Daniel W.
Aiello, Allison E.
Harris, Kathleen Mullan

Article Type

Regular

PMCID

PMC9489644

Data Set/Study

Health and Retirement Study (HRS)

Continent/Country

United States of America

State

Nonspecific

ORCiD

Aiello - 0000-0001-7029-2537
Harris, KM - 0000-0001-9757-1026
Yang, YC - 0000-0001-7279-1479