Sage Journals: Discover world-class research

Abstract

Purpose.

To examine the relationship between mental distress and preventive health behaviors (i.e., mammograms, pap tests, physical exams) among women.

Methods.

A cross-sectional design was employed. The sample consisted of 426 women from the Appalachian region in the United States who completed a comprehensive health survey. Mental distress was assessed by the 5-item Mental Health Index (MHI). Logistic regression was used to specify the models allowing for the control of covariates (i.e., marital status, education, recipient of Medicaid).

Results.

Women who reported high mental distress were more likely to not get timely pap tests [OR = 1.64; 95% CI (1.10, 2.45); p < .05] or physical exams [OR = 1.68; 95% CI (1.07, 2.65); p < .05] than women who did not report being mentally distressed. A similar but less robust relationship was found between mental distress and timely mammograms.

Conclusions.

These findings suggest that mental distress affects the likelihood of engagement in preventive health behaviors.

Keywords

Women's Health Mental Distress Prevention Research Manuscript format: research Research purpose: modeling/relationship testing Study design: nonexperimental Outcome measure: preventative health behaviors Setting: local community Health focus: medical self care mammograms Strategy: n/a Target population: adult women Target population circumstances: geographic location education

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Saslow

Runowicz

Solomon

, American Cancer Society guideline for the early detection of cervical neoplasia and cancer. CA A Cancer J Clin. 2002;52:342–362.

Smith

Saslow

Andrews

Sawyer K

, American Cancer Society guidelines for breast cancer screening? Update, 2003. CA A Cancer J Clin. 2003;53:141–169.

Maxwell

Bancej

Snider

Predictors of mammography use among Canadian women aged 50–69: Findings from the 1996/97 National Population Health Survey. Can Med Assoc J. 2001;164:329–334.

Cummings

Whetstone

Shende

Weismiller

Predictors of screening mammography—implications for office practice. Arch Fam Med. 2000;9:870–875.

Wulsin

Singal

. Do depressive symptoms increase the risk for the onset of coronary disease? A systematic quantitative review. Psychosom Med. 2003;65:201–210.

Cassidy

Kotynia-English

Acres

, Association between lifestyle factors and mental health measures among community-dwelling older women. Aust N Z Psychiatr. 2004;38:940–947.

McHorney

Ware

. Construction and validation of an alternate form general mental health scale for the medical outcomes study short-form 36-item health survey. Med Care. 1995;33:15–28.

Stewart

Hays

Ware

. The MOS short-form general health survey: Reliability and validity in a patient population. Med Care. 1988;26:724.

Stewart

Greenfield

Hays

. Functional status and well-being of patients with chronic conditions: Results from the Medical Outcomes Study. JAMA. 1989;262:907.

10.

Rowan

Davidson

Campbell

, Depressive symptoms predict medical utilization in a population-based sample. Psychol Med. 2002;32:903–908.

11.

Green

Pope

. Depressive symptoms, health promotion, and health risk behaviors. Am J Health Prom. 2000;15:29–34.

12.

Wellisch

Lindberg

. A psychological profile of depressed and nondepressed women at high risk for breast cancer. Psychosomatics. 2001;42:330–336.

The Effect of Mental Distress on Women's Preventive Health Behaviors