The Long-Term Health Effects of Caregiving on Women’s Health and Mortality

• In Event: 178 - Section on the Sociology of the Family Paper Session. Families, Health, and Well-Being

Abstract

Recognizing that caring for ill or disabled relatives or friends can be highly stressful, many scholars have investigated the health concerns of caregivers. This work consistently shows that caregiving is associated with poorer mental and physical health. However, the research tends to be cross-sectional or rely on a short follow-up period, so we know less about whether these health effects persist over longer periods of time. Additionally, existing research defines caregiving broadly and has been limited in the ability to explore whether caregiving contexts—that is, caregiving inside or outside of the home—influence the relationship between caregiving and health. In this paper we use data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Mature Women to explore caregiving’s long-term impact on depressive symptoms, functional limitations and mortality. Our analyses show that caregiving does influence women’s long-term health, but that these effects vary by the caregiving context and the outcome considered. Caregiving outside the home does not impact later health and is associated with decreased mortality, while caregiving for someone in the household is associated with more symptoms of depression and functional limitations in later life. These findings elaborate our understanding of the health concerns of a growing population of informal caregivers.

Authors

• Jennifer Caputo, Indiana University

• Eliza K. Pavalko, Indiana University