Household crowding is associated with higher allostatic load among the Inuit

Riva, Mylène; Plusquellec, Pierrich; Juster, Robert‐Paul; Laouan-Sidi, Elhadji A.; Abdous, Belkacem; Lucas, Michel; Déry, Steve; Dewailly, Éric

doi:10.1136/jech-2013-203270

Cited by 50 publications

(50 citation statements)

References 46 publications

(43 reference statements)

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“…Finally, household overcrowding could be associated with other problems than depressive symptoms and suicidal thoughts in adolescents, such as perceived stress and food insecurity [25,38] or stress-related physiological dysregulation [57]. The definition of one’s identity and role in society, two tasks that characterise childhood and adolescence, could be specifically challenged by household overcrowding.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Household overcrowding and psychological distress among Nunavik Inuit adolescents: a longitudinal study

Pépin

Muckle

Moisan

et al. 2018

International Journal of Circumpolar Health

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About half of Nunavik Inuit live in overcrowded households compared to very few Canadians from the general population. Living in overcrowded households is associated with greater risks of suffering from mental health problems for Canadian adolescents. The present work aims at studying prospectively the hypothesised relationship between household overcrowding at childhood and psychological distress during adolescence among Nunavik Inuit, as well as the hypothesised relationship between these phenomena when they are both measure at adolescence. Recruited as part of the Nunavik Child Development Study, 220 participants were met at 11 years old in average and then when they were 18 years old in average. Household overcrowding was assessed using the people per room ratio. Psychological distress symptoms were operationalised at adolescence using depressive symptoms and suicidal thoughts. The results did not show that childhood household crowding had a long-term effect on psychological distress. An absence of moderation by sex of the association was also found in the present study. Despite those results, household crowding could be a risk factor only when in interaction with other elements related with poverty or housing or could be experienced as a difficulty for adolescents on other aspects than depressive symptoms and suicidal thoughts.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Household overcrowding and psychological distress among Nunavik Inuit adolescents: a longitudinal study

Pépin

Muckle

Moisan

et al. 2018

International Journal of Circumpolar Health

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“…(Crowcroft et al, 1998) Because household crowding can increase exposure to infectious pathogens as well as contribute to psychosocial(Regoeczi, 2008; Riva et al, 2014a) and physiologic stress (e.g. allostatic load, cardiovascular reactivity), (Johnston-Brooks et al, 1998; Riva et al, 2014b) further research on the effect and mechanisms of household crowding on the immune system is warranted.…”

Section: 0 Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Depressive symptoms are associated with salivary shedding of Epstein-Barr virus in female adolescents: The role of sex differences

Ford

Stowe

2017

Psychoneuroendocrinology

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Background Adolescent females have a higher prevalence of depression in comparison to their male peers - a disparity that has been increasing over the past decade. Depression is of concern as it is associated with chronic disease and to immune dysregulation, which may be one mechanism linking depression to future pathology. This study examined the extent to which sex moderated the association between depressive symptoms and immune dysregulation during adolescence using Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) reactivation, a biomarker of cellular immune response, as a model. Methods A representative community sample of 259 female and 279 male adolescents aged 11 to 17 years who were EBV IgG positive were examined. Trained interviewers collected the data during two home visits, one week apart. Depressive symptoms were measured at the first visit using the 9 item short-form of the Center for Epidemiologic Studies-Depression scale. EBV biomarkers were collected via saliva at the second visit and included a qualitative measure of EBV viral capsid antigen immunoglobulin G to assess prior EBV infection and a quantitative measure of EBV DNA to assess the number of viral copies shed in the saliva. Results In multivariable logistic regression analyses, increasing depressive symptoms were significantly associated with salivary shedding of EBV DNA for adolescent females only (logit=0.66, se=0.30, p<0.05), and the interaction between sex and depressive symptoms on salivary shedding of EBV DNA was statistically significant (logit= −1.19, se=0.42, p<0.01). Sensitivity analyses were conducted in which sex was examined as a moderator in the relationship between depressive symptoms and salivary EBV DNA quantitative copies via Tobit regression; results were consistent with the presented findings. Conclusions Depressive symptoms are associated with EBV reactivation among EBV positive female adolescents, but not males. Future research is needed to examine EBV reactivation in female adolescents as a mechanism linking depression to future chronic disease and the role of sex hormones in explaining sex differences in the relationship between depressive symptoms and EBV reactivation.

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“…27 Overcrowded housing at the individual level has been previously linked to physical markers of stress in Nunavik. 28 We are not aware of previous studies that have demonstrated an association directly with mental health or wellness or an association with communitylevel crowding. The latter association was not confirmed after adjustment, though this finding should be viewed with caution since household-level crowding is likely both a confounder and a mediator of the effect of community-level crowding.…”

mentioning

confidence: 83%

Individual- and community-level determinants of Inuit youth mental wellness

Gray¹,

Richer

Harper³

2016

Can J Public Health

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OBJECTIVES: Following the onset of intensive colonial intervention and rapid social change in the lives of Inuit people, youth in Nunavik have experienced high rates of mental health problems and suicide. Inuit people describe a broad range of contextual influences on mental wellness based on lived experience, but most epidemiological studies have focused on individual risk factors and pathologies. This study aimed to assess the influence of multiple determinants of mental wellness among Inuit youth in Nunavik, including culturally meaningful activities, housing and community social characteristics. METHODS:Mental wellness was measured in the form of two primary outcomes: self-esteem and suicidal ideation. Using cross-sectional data from the 2004 Nunavik Inuit Health Survey and multilevel regression modelling, we estimated associations between these two outcomes and various independent individual-and community-level explanatory factors among Inuit youth. All variables were selected to reflect Inuit perspectives on determinants of mental wellness. The study design and interpretation of results were validated with Inuit community representatives. RESULTS:Pride in Inuit identity, traditional activities, community-level social support and community-level socio-economic status were found to be protective. Barriers to participating in traditional activities, household crowding and high community rates of violence were risk factors.CONCLUSION: These findings support Inuit perspectives, expand the scope of epidemiological analysis of Inuit mental wellness and reinforce the need for locally informed, community-wide approaches to mental wellness promotion for Inuit youth.KEY WORDS: Community psychiatry; Inuits; mental health; multilevel analysis; social conditions; social determinants of health La traduction du résumé se trouve à la fin de l'article.

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Household crowding is associated with higher allostatic load among the Inuit

Cited by 50 publications

References 46 publications

Household overcrowding and psychological distress among Nunavik Inuit adolescents: a longitudinal study

Household overcrowding and psychological distress among Nunavik Inuit adolescents: a longitudinal study

Depressive symptoms are associated with salivary shedding of Epstein-Barr virus in female adolescents: The role of sex differences

Individual- and community-level determinants of Inuit youth mental wellness

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