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. 2010 Mar;29(2):153-9.
doi: 10.1037/a0018163.

Relation of stressful life events to metabolic control among adolescents with diabetes: 5-year longitudinal study

Vicki S Helgeson  1 , Oscar Escobar, Linda Siminerio, Dorothy Becker
Affiliations

Relation of stressful life events to metabolic control among adolescents with diabetes: 5-year longitudinal study

Vicki S Helgeson et al. Health Psychol. 2010 Mar.

Abstract

Objective: To determine the relation of stressful life events to metabolic control.

Design: We interviewed adolescents with Type 1 diabetes (n = 132; average age at enrollment = 12 years) annually for 5 years.

Measures: Each year we administered measures of stressful life events, psychological distress, and self-care behavior. We downloaded data from blood glucose meters, and obtained measures of metabolic control (hemoglobin A1c) from medical records.

Results: Using longitudinal growth curve modeling, stressful life events predicted greater psychological distress, poorer self-care behavior, and worse metabolic control in both cross-sectional and longitudinal (lagged) analyses. Cross-sectionally, many of these relations were stronger among older than younger adolescents. Self-care behavior partly mediated this association.

Conclusion: Stressful life events are related to poor metabolic control-especially for older adolescents. A primary mechanism appears to be a lack of good self care. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved).

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Relation of Stressful Life Events to Depressive Symptoms for Males and Females
Figure 2
Figure 2
Relation of Stressful Life Events to Meter Readings for Older (75th percentile) and Younger (25th percentile) Adolescents
Figure 3
Figure 3
Relation of Stressful Life Events to Metabolic Control (hbA1c) for Older (75th percentile) and Younger (25th percentile) Adolescents
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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