Repeating a school year, experiencing parental abuse or engaging in armed combat have far-reaching long-term effects. Lifetime trauma may even worsen end-of-life pain and discomfort, depression and loneliness. These are some of the main findings from the Health and Retirement Study, which followed approximately 6,500 Americans over 50 who died from 2006 to 2020.
The study, led by the University of Michigan and the University of California, San Francisco, is published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society. For author Kate Duchowny, a researcher at the U-M Institute for Social Research, trauma “gets under the skin.” We know that trauma is associated with depression and anxiety, which may promote a pro-inflammatory environment that is associated with chronic conditions.
Persistent stress can lead to inflammation and adverse health consequences in later life.” Kate Duchowny, Researcher, Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan Co-author Ashwin Kotwal of the UCSF Division of Geriatrics and the San Francisco VA Medical Center said that early-life trauma, in particular, especially physical abuse by parents, was strongly related to end-of-life pain, loneliness and depressive symptoms. “Traumatic events in childhood may have reverberating effects throughout the lifespan,” he said.
“They may play a role in social and emotional isolation, poor health habits and an increased risk of subsequent trauma.” Study participants completed a questionnaire ab.