Abstract
Objective: Poor mental health is associated with impaired social functioning, lower quality of life, and increased risk of suicide and mortality. This study examined the prevalence of poor general mental health among older adults (aged 65 years and above) and its sociodemographic correlates in Hebei province, which is a predominantly agricultural area of China.Methods: This epidemiological survey was conducted from April to August 2016. General mental health status was assessed using the 12-item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12).Results: A total of 3,911 participants were included. The prevalence of poor mental health (defined as GHQ-12 total score ≥ 4) was 9.31% [95% confidence interval (CI): 8.4–10.2%]. Multivariable logistic regression analyses found that female gender [P < 0.001, odds ratio (OR) = 1.63, 95% CI: 1.29–2.07], lower education level (P = 0.048, OR = 1.33, 95% CI: 1.00–1.75), lower annual household income (P = 0.005, OR = 1.72, 95% CI: 1.17–2.51), presence of major medical conditions (P < 0.001, OR = 2.95, 95% CI: 2.19–3.96) and family history of psychiatric disorders (P < 0.001, OR = 3.53, 95% CI: 2.02–6.17) were significantly associated with poor mental health.Conclusion: The prevalence of poor mental health among older adults in a predominantly agricultural area was lower than findings from many other countries and areas in China. However, continued surveillance of mental health status among older adults in China is still needed.
Highlights
The proportion of aging populations has been rapidly increasing in many nations, especially in developing countries [1, 2]
Female gender [P < 0.001, odds ratio (OR) = 1.63, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.29–2.07], lower education level (P = 0.048, OR = 1.33, 95% CI: 1.00–1.75), lower annual household income (P = 0.005, OR = 1.72, 95% CI: 1.17–2.51), presence of major medical conditions (P < 0.001, OR = 2.95, 95% CI: 2.19–3.96) and family history of psychiatric disorders (P < 0.001, OR = 3.53, 95% CI: 2.02–6.17) were significant correlates of poor mental health, and accounted for 8% of the total variance of the prediction model for mental health status. In this large-scale epidemiological study, we found that the prevalence of poor mental health status based on total General Health Questionnaire (GHQ)-12 scores of ≥4 was 9.31% among older adults in Hebei province
The prevalence of poor mental health among older adults found in this study (9.31%) was lower than rates reported in other countries that used the GHQ-12, including Finland (15.3%) [44], Brazil (38.5%) [27] and Japan
Summary
The proportion of aging populations has been rapidly increasing in many nations, especially in developing countries [1, 2]. In China, the percentage of individuals aged 65 years and above is expected to increase from 8.2% in 2010 to 23.3% by 2050 [3]. In light of such trends, mental health among older adults has received growing attention in past decades due to its associations with daily activity and social functioning [3, 4]. Negative health outcomes of poor mental health include cognitive dysfunction, impaired social functioning, lower quality of life, and even increased risk of suicide and mortality [21,22,23,24]
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