69. Stress, coping, and inflammation in adolescents

Abstract

Stress can upregulate inflammatory processes and increase disease risk, but differences in how individuals cope with stress might moderate this association. We investigated relationships between stress, coping, and inflammation (i.e., C-reactive protein (CRP)) in a healthy sample of adolescents ( n = 243). We hypothesized that adolescents reporting greater stress would exhibit higher CRP levels and that among individuals under high stress, approach-oriented coping (i.e., use of positive reappraisal, humor, engaging in demanding activities, and developing self-reliance) would be associated with lower CRP. In regression analyses adjusted for age, sex, race, body mass index, smoking, and socioeconomic status, there were no significant associations between stress and CRP, but significant interactions between stress and coping emerged. For adolescents reporting more unpleasant stressful life events in the past 12 months, approach-oriented coping was inversely associated with CRP (beta = −.19, p < .05). Coping was significantly associated with CRP in the context of interpersonal stress, whether measured as stressful life events reflecting interpersonal conflict (e.g., arguments with parents or siblings, conflict between adults in the home, friendship ended) or frequency of arguments with others reported in daily diaries completed each evening for one week. Findings suggest that approach-oriented coping is associated with lower levels of inflammation, but only when adolescents are challenged by significant interpersonal stress.