Emotional and instrumental support during childhood and biological dysregulation in midlife

Abstract

Objective: To determine whether greater emotional and instrumental support during childhood is associated with less dysregulation across multiple physiological systems in midlife.

Methods: Data are from participants in the second wave of the Midlife in the United States study (2004-2005) who participated in a clinic-based assessment of health status. Emotional and instrumental support was measured using a seven-item scale (α=0.89) based on participant retrospective self-report. Biological dysregulation was assessed using an allostatic load (AL) score constructed from 24 measures across seven physiological systems (N=1236, aged 34-84 years).

Results: Emotional and instrumental support in childhood was associated with lower AL in a monotonic fashion: compared to individuals in the lowest quartile of support, respondents in the second, third, and fourth quartiles had -0.08 (standard deviation (SD)=0.08), -0.13 (SD=0.08) and -0.21 (SD=0.08) units lower AL, adjusting for age, sex, and race. This pattern was maintained after adjustment for reporting bias, childhood socioeconomic disadvantage, past-year depression, and physician-diagnosed cardiovascular disease or diabetes (p≤0.01). The inflammation and metabolic-lipid subscales showed the strongest associations.

Conclusions: Greater emotional and instrumental support in childhood was associated with less biological dysregulation in midlife, even after accounting for socioeconomic disadvantage in childhood and other potential confounders.

Keywords: Allostatic load; Childhood; Emotional support; Instrumental support; Life course; Parental support; Physiological dysregulation.