Evaluating the Effects of Coping Style on Allostatic Load, by Sex: The Jackson Heart Study, 2000-2004.
Cristina A Fernandez, Eric B Loucks, Kristopher L Arheart, DeMarc A Hickson, Robert Kohn, Stephen L Buka, Annie Gjelsvik
Author Information
Cristina A Fernandez: Department of Epidemiology, Brown University School of Public Health, Box G-S121-2, Providence, RI 02912. Email: cristina_fernandez@brown.edu.
Eric B Loucks: Department of Epidemiology, Brown University School of Public Health, Providence, Rhode Island.
Kristopher L Arheart: Department of Public Health Sciences, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, Miami, Florida.
DeMarc A Hickson: Department of Medicine, University of Mississippi Medical Center and Center for Research, Evaluation, and Environmental and Policy Change, My Brother's Keeper, Inc, Jackson, Mississippi.
Robert Kohn: Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior , Providence, Rhode Island.
Stephen L Buka: Department of Epidemiology, Brown University School of Public Health, Providence, Rhode Island.
Annie Gjelsvik: Department of Epidemiology, Brown University School of Public Health and Department of Pediatrics and Hasbro Children's Hospital, Providence, Rhode Island.
The objective of this study was to examine the cross-sectional association between coping styles and allostatic load among African American adults in the Jackson Heart Study (2000-2004). Coping styles were assessed using the Coping Strategies Inventory-Short Form; allostatic load was measured by using 9 biomarkers standardized into z-scores. Sex-stratified multivariable linear regressions indicated that females who used disengagement coping styles had significantly higher allostatic load scores (β = 0.016; 95% CI, 0.001-0.032); no such associations were found in males. Future longitudinal investigations should examine why disengagement coping style is linked to increased allostatic load to better inform effective interventions and reduce health disparities among African American women.
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