Psychological Well-Being in Childhood and Cardiometabolic Risk in Middle Adulthood: Findings From the 1958 British Birth Cohort

Abstract

Childhood adversity is linked to poor cardiometabolic outcomes, but less is known about positive childhood factors. Using data from 4,007 members of the 1958 British Birth Cohort, we investigated whether children with greater psychological well-being had lower adulthood cardiometabolic risk. At age 11, participants wrote essays about their future. Two judges rated each essay for nine psychological well-being items (Finn’s r = .82–.91), which were combined into a standardized overall score (Cronbach’s α = .91). When participants reached age 45, nurses assessed their blood pressure, heart rate, lipids, glycosylated hemoglobin, fibrinogen, and C-reactive protein, which were standardized and summed for total cardiometabolic risk. Regressions indicated that children with greater psychological well-being had lower cardiometabolic risk ( b = −0.14, 95% confidence interval [CI] = [−0.28, −0.006]): specifically, healthier total cholesterol ( b = −0.04, 95% CI = [−0.07, −0.003]) and triglycerides ( b = −0.06, 95% CI = [−0.09, −0.02]). Childhood psychological well-being may promote adulthood cardiometabolic health.

Child psychological well-being and adult health behavior and body mass index.

“…When disagreements occurred, ratings from a third person replaced the ratings from the judge with the most discrepant set of ratings. As noted elsewhere, interrater agreement for each PWB item was excellent (Boehm et al, 2022).…”

“…In 2016-2017, 10,511 essays were transcribed and digitized for researchers. Because the current study was part of a larger study investigating cardiovascular risk in midlife (Boehm et al, 2022), only essays written by children who also had adult cardiovascular and biobehavioral assessments through age 42 were selected and coded by research assistants (n = 5,463). Individuals missing data on childhood PWB (because there was not enough information to code it; n missing = 282) and adulthood health behaviors at either ages 33 or 42 (n missing = 453) were further excluded from the analytic sample, resulting in 4,728 participants available for analysis (Figure S1 in the online supplemental materials).…”

“…Given that word use can parallel emotional experience and relates to health and well-being (Vine et al, 2020), we used the essays written by 11-year-old participants about their future to assess facets of PWB (Heyman et al, 2014; Lee & Peterson, 1997). Using face-valid questions (e.g., “To what extent is the author optimistic about his or her future?”) and a scale ranging from 1 ( not at all ) to 7 ( very ), trained research assistants rated the extent to which each PWB facet was reflected in the essay (Boehm et al, 2022). Two items measured optimism and two items measured purpose in life but single items measured all other facets, for a total of nine rated items.…”

“…Using face-valid questions (e.g., "To what extent is the author optimistic about his or her future?") and a scale ranging from 1 (not at all) to 7 (very), trained research assistants rated the extent to which each PWB facet was reflected in the essay (Boehm et al, 2022). Two items measured optimism and two items measured purpose in life but single items measured all other facets, for a total of nine rated items.…”

“…Identifying protective factors early in life is critical given the difficulty in reversing unhealthy biobehavioral profiles once they are established. Recent work indicates that psychological well-being (PWB)—or regularly experiencing positive thoughts and feelings (Boehm & Kubzansky, 2012)—is a childhood resource that reduces cardiovascular risk in adulthood (as measured by clinically assessed biological markers; Boehm et al, 2022). Evidence from adults suggests PWB may be protective because it can motivate individuals to engage in healthy behaviors that in turn build other resources (e.g., social connections), as well as mitigate negative or stressful feelings that lead to unhealthy behaviors (e.g., cigarette smoking and sedentary behavior) or physiological dysregulation (Kubzansky et al, 2018; van Cappellen et al, 2018).…”