Depression, anxiety confer lower levels of CV health in younger adults

Anxiety and depression are associated with less ideal CV health in young adults, according to data presented at the American Heart Association’s virtual Epidemiology, Prevention, Lifestyle and Cardiometabolic Health Scientific Sessions.

Sierra L. Patterson, MPH, clinical research coordinator in the department of pediatrics at Emory University School of Medicine, and colleagues analyzed 134 participants aged 18 to 34 years from the Emory Healthy Aging Study, 15.2% of whom had moderate to severe anxiety and 15% of whom had moderate to severe depression.

According to the researchers, compared with those without anxiety, participants with moderate to severe anxiety were less likely to meet ideal levels of physical activity (prevalence ratio [PR] = 0.63; 95% CI, 0.44-0.9), smoking (PR = 0.89; 95% CI, 0.81-0.98) and BMI (PR = 0.78; 95% CI, 0.65-0.94).

The researchers found that participants with moderate to severe depression were less likely to meet ideal levels of cholesterol (PR = 0.93; 95% CI, 0.86-1), physical activity (PR = 0.45; 95% CI, 0.3-0.69), smoking (PR = 0.89; 95% CI, 0.79-0.99), BP (PR = 0.91; 95% CI, 0.84-0.98) and BMI (PR = 0.81; 95% CI, 0.71-0.93) compared with those without depression.

The researchers wrote in an abstract that the associations appeared strongest in adults aged 26 to 34 years.

Compared with those without anxiety, participants with moderate to severe anxiety had a CV health score that was 0.91 points lower (standard error, 0.18; P < .01).

In contrast to those without depression, participants with moderate to severe depression had a CV health score that was 1.19 points lower (standard error, 0.18; P < .01), according to the researchers.

“Interventions to address mood disorders in this age group should consider targeting CV health behaviors such as physical activity and weight management to improve both mood and CV health,” the researchers wrote in an abstract.

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AHA EPI/Lifestyle and Cardiometabolic Health Scientific Sessions