Are religiosity and prayer use related with multiple behavioural risk factors for chronic diseases in European adults aged 50+ years?

Linardakis, Manolis; Papadaki, Angeliki; Smpokos, Emmanouil; Sarri, Katerina; Vozikaki, Maria; Philalithis, Αnastas

doi:10.1016/j.puhe.2015.02.006

Cited by 17 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 35 publications

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“…The main result of the present investigation is the significantly lower risk of being a current smoker and for drinking alcohol in highly religious individuals in comparison with less religious or non-religious people. This result is consistent with findings from previous studies with immigrant samples ([ 23 , 24 , 25 , 26 , 27 , 28 ] and with the results of the Polish General Social Survey ( n = 1526) [ 49 ] and the Survey of Health, Ageing, and Retirement in Europe ( n = 16,557) ([ 50 ]. Several possible explanations can be provided for the protective role of religiosity against substance consumption.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Health-Related Lifestyle Behavior and Religiosity among First-Generation Immigrants of Polish Origin in Germany

Morawa

Erim

2018

IJERPH

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Background: Health-related lifestyle behaviors such as smoking, alcohol consumption, physical inactivity and obesity are major cardiovascular risk factors. Previous studies have mostly demonstrated a favorable association between religiosity and these cardiovascular risk factors; however, no studies have investigated this relationship in Polish immigrants. The aim of this cross-sectional study was to examine the association between health-related lifestyle behaviors and religiosity in Polish immigrants in Germany. Methods: The smoking patterns, frequency of alcohol consumption, physical activity, and presence of overweight/obesity were assessed in 257 first-generation immigrants of Polish origin living in Germany. Religiosity was measured with the Centrality of Religiosity Scale (CRS, Huber, 2003) consisting of 15 items that categorized the respondents into intrinsically, extrinsically, and not/marginally religious. Results: After adjusting for various sociodemographic, migration, and health-related characteristics, intrinsic religiosity was significantly associated with a lower risk of being a smoker (odds ratios (OR) = 0.34, confidence intervals (CI) = 0.15–0.76) and was also associated with a lower risk of alcohol consumption (OR = 0.33, CI = 0.15–0.71), but a higher risk of being overweight/obese (OR = 2.53, CI = 1.15–5.56) in comparison with extrinsic/marginal religiosity. No significant relationship was found between religiosity and physical activity. Conclusions: In Polish immigrants, intrinsic religiosity acts as a protective factor against some cardiovascular risk factors (smoking and alcohol consumption).

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Health-Related Lifestyle Behavior and Religiosity among First-Generation Immigrants of Polish Origin in Germany

Morawa

Erim

2018

IJERPH

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“…The relationship between spirituality and health has been primarily studied in the context of religious or spiritual practices such as prayer (Linardakis et al, 2015;Paiva, Paiva, Yennuraljalingam, & Hui, 2014;Upchurch, Dye, Chyu, Gold, & Greendale, 2010), church attendance (Chiswick & Mirtcheva, 2013;Koenig & Vaillant, 2009), and meditation (Galante, Galante, Bekkers, & Gallacher, 2014;Lomas, Ridge, Cartwright, & Edginton, 2014). The association between these and other spiritual practices and health related outcomes is thought to depend on sociological principles that promote health behaviors and indirectly link spirituality to better health (Ellison & Levin, 1998;McCullough & Smith, 2003).…”

Section: Spirituality and Healthmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spirituality and suicidal behavior: The mediating role of self-forgiveness and psychache.

Hall¹,

Webb²,

Hirsch³

2020

Psychology of Religion and Spirituality

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Growing evidence for the salubrious association of spirituality with physical and mental health related outcomes has led to the consideration of spirituality as a protective factor against suicidal behavior. Although support for this basic association is robust, particularly in the context of religious belief and attendance, spirituality has yet to be explored as it relates to psychache-intense, unrelenting psychological pain. Additionally, self-forgiveness has emerged as an important protective factor against suicidal behavior, but has not been explored in the context of psychache. Following a model developed by Webb, Hirsch, and Toussaint (2015), we examine the protective role of spirituality on suicidal behavior, based on three dimensions of spirituality: ritualistic, theistic, and existential. Cross-sectional data were collected from the self-report surveys of 262 individuals drawn from the larger U.S. community. Results suggest that existential spirituality may be the dimension of spirituality most robustly associated with suicidal behavior. Further, self-forgiveness and psychache were found to be mediators of the relationship between existential spirituality and suicidal behavior. Synthesis of the findings from this study, and the implications thereof, are discussed.

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“…These practices have been used to enhance health, healing, and coping (Andrade & Radhakrishnan, 2009;Dunn & Horgas, 2000;Fraser, 2013). Studies on meditation and mindfulness-based interventions have been found to be useful for chronic pain (Hilton et al, 2017), sleep problems (Slomski, 2015), managing chronic diseases and psychological symptoms such as anxiety, stress, and depression (Bohlmeijer, Prenger, Taal, & Cuijpers, 2010;Linardakis et al, 2015;Monshat & Castle, 2012;Schneider & Grim, 2012;Simpson & Mapel, 2013). Faith and/or prayer have been useful in managing and coping with symptoms associated with chronic illnesses and in preserving psychological well-being and quality of life (Harvey & Cook, 2010;Linardakis et al, 2015;Salmoirago-Blotcher et al, 2013).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Episodic Memory in Later Life: Benefits of Prayer and Meditation

Lekhak¹,

Bhatta

Zauszniewski

2020

J Holist Nurs

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Purpose: To examine the effects of prayer and meditation on the episodic memory of older adults. Design: Secondary analysis of Health and Retirement Study (HRS). Method: Drawing from a subsample of HRS ( n = 1,135), this study utilized generalized estimating equation regression models to examine the effects of meditation and prayer on changes in episodic memory of older adults over time. Findings: Findings show a statistically significant positive effect of the use of prayer (0.50, p < .05) on episodic memory score at baseline. We also observed a slight gain in episodic memory over time for older adults who used prayer (0.04, p = .05). Meditation was not found to have a statistically significant effect on changes in memory in later life. Conclusion: This study illustrates the benefits of prayer in preserving memory and provides much needed empirical basis for community-level interventions to enhance memory in later life.

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Are religiosity and prayer use related with multiple behavioural risk factors for chronic diseases in European adults aged 50+ years?

Cited by 17 publications

References 35 publications

Health-Related Lifestyle Behavior and Religiosity among First-Generation Immigrants of Polish Origin in Germany

Health-Related Lifestyle Behavior and Religiosity among First-Generation Immigrants of Polish Origin in Germany

Spirituality and suicidal behavior: The mediating role of self-forgiveness and psychache.

Episodic Memory in Later Life: Benefits of Prayer and Meditation

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