Work

Death of a Parent, Racial Inequities, and Cardiovascular Disease Risk in Early to Mid-adulthood.

Year: 2024

Type: article

Abstract: Black Americans experience the death of a parent much earlier in the life course than White Americans on average. However, studies have not considered whether the cardiovascular health consequences of early parental death vary by race. Using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health, we explore associations between early parental death and cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk in early to mid-adulthood (N = 4,193). We find that the death of a parent during childhood or adolescence (ages 0-17) or the transition to adulthood (ages 18-27) is associated with increased CVD risk for Black Americans, whereas parental death following the transition to adulthood (ages 28+) undermines cardiovascular health for both Black Americans and White Americans. These findings illustrate how a stress and life course perspective can help inform strategies aimed at addressing both the unequal burden of bereavement and high cardiovascular risk faced by Black Americans.

Source: Carolina Digital Repository (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill)

DOI: 10.17615/g2xd-kb89

Authors: Liu, Hui, Needham, Belinda L, Umberson, Debra, Hummer, Robert A, Goosby, Bridget J, Garcia, Michael A

Institution: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Language: English

Topic: Grief, Bereavement, and Mental Health

Subfield: Clinical Psychology

Field: Psychology

Domain: Social Sciences

SDGs: Good health and well-being, Reduced inequalities

Open Access status: green

Funders: National Institute on Aging, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development