Extended family risky for women
2008-12-16 22:15
New York - Having multiple generations living under one roof may take a toll on women's health, according to new research.
In a study that followed nearly 91 000 middle-aged and
older adults beginning in 1990, Japanese scientists found that
women who lived with their spouse, children and parents or
parents-in-law had a higher risk of developing heart disease.
They were about three time more likely to be diagnosed with
coronary heart disease 15 years later than women who only lived
with their husband.
Women who lived with their spouse and children had twice
the risk of heart disease as women who shared their home with a
spouse alone.
But multigenerational living had no impact on
men's hearts.
It's possible, or even likely, that chronic stress explains
why such living arrangements would affect women in particular,
said Dr A Ikeda of Osaka University in Japan, who
reported the findings in the medical journal Heart.
Even with other factors considered - such as age, exercise
habits and smoking - living arrangements were still linked to
the risk of heart disease in women.
Ikeda's team suggests that the stress of having multiple
roles in the household - wife, mother and daughter or
daughter-in-law - may exact a toll on some women's
cardiovascular health.
Over time, the researchers said, chronic stress affects the
nervous system, which can exacerbate high blood pressure,
hinder the normal functioning of the blood vessels or
contribute to the formation of blood clots.