Supportive role models, coping lead to better health in poor teens
Thursday, December 20, 2012 - 22:00
in Psychology & Sociology
While low socioeconomic status is often a strong determinant of chronic disease, new research shows that low-income teenagers who have supportive role models and who use adaptive coping strategies have lower levels of interleukin-6, a marker for cardiovascular risk. The researchers collected data on 163 socioeconomically diverse, healthy Canadian adolescents using interviews, questionnaires, and blood samples. Coping strategies and role models were found to be associated with inflammatory marker interleukin-6 only in low-income teenagers.