Luca Bianchetti1, Flaminio Squazzoni2, Niccolò Casnici3, Devis Bianchini4, Emirena Garrafa5, Claudia Archetti2, Valentina Romano1, Luca Rozzini1, Michele Melchiori4, Chiara Fiorentini5, Daniela Uberti5, Stefano Calza5, Alessandra Marengoni1. 1. Department of Clinical and Experimental Sciences, University of Brescia, Viale Europa 11, 25123, Brescia, Italy. 2. Department of Economics and Management, University of Brescia, Via San Faustino 74/b, 25122, Brescia, Italy. 3. Department of Clinical and Experimental Sciences, University of Brescia, Viale Europa 11, 25123, Brescia, Italy. n.casnici@unibs.it. 4. Department of Information Engineering, University of Brescia, Via Branze 38, 25123, Brescia, Italy. 5. Department of Translational and Molecular Medicine, University of Brescia, Viale Europa 11, 25123, Brescia, Italy.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Certain features of the social environment could maintain and even improve not only psychological well-being, but also health and cognition of the elderly. AIMS: We tested the association between social network characteristics and the number of chronic diseases in the elderly. METHODS: A randomized sample of the elderly population of Brescia, Italy, was evaluated (N = 200, age ≥65 years). We performed a comprehensive geriatric assessment, including information on socio-demographic variables (family, friendships, and acquaintance contacts). We measured each person's social network, i.e., degree, efficiency, and variety. RESULTS: The sample included 118 women and 82 men, mean age 77.7 years. The mean number of chronic diseases was 3.5. A higher social network degree, i.e., more social connections, was associated with fewer diseases. We also found that having more contacts with people similar to each other or intense relationships with people who do not know each other were associated with fewer diseases. CONCLUSION: More healthy people tend to share certain characteristics of social networks. Our study indicates that it is important to look at diseases and health as complex phenomena, which requires integrating different levels of analysis.
BACKGROUND: Certain features of the social environment could maintain and even improve not only psychological well-being, but also health and cognition of the elderly. AIMS: We tested the association between social network characteristics and the number of chronic diseases in the elderly. METHODS: A randomized sample of the elderly population of Brescia, Italy, was evaluated (N = 200, age ≥65 years). We performed a comprehensive geriatric assessment, including information on socio-demographic variables (family, friendships, and acquaintance contacts). We measured each person's social network, i.e., degree, efficiency, and variety. RESULTS: The sample included 118 women and 82 men, mean age 77.7 years. The mean number of chronic diseases was 3.5. A higher social network degree, i.e., more social connections, was associated with fewer diseases. We also found that having more contacts with people similar to each other or intense relationships with people who do not know each other were associated with fewer diseases. CONCLUSION: More healthy people tend to share certain characteristics of social networks. Our study indicates that it is important to look at diseases and health as complex phenomena, which requires integrating different levels of analysis.
Entities:
Keywords:
Aging; Chronic diseases; Health status; Network degree; Social factors; Social networks
Authors: Anna-Maria Lahti; Tuija M Mikkola; Minna Salonen; Niko Wasenius; Anneli Sarvimäki; Johan G Eriksson; Mikaela B von Bonsdorff Journal: Int J Environ Res Public Health Date: 2021-11-23 Impact factor: 3.390