Introduction
Many informal caregivers experience a significant caregiving burden, which may interfere
with their health behaviors. Caregiver health behaviors may vary by disease context,
but this has rarely been studied. This study compares the health behaviors of prevalent
groups of chronic illness caregivers (i.e., dementia, cancer, chronic obstructive
pulmonary disease/emphysema, diabetes) with those of noncaregivers and examines whether
caregiving intensity is associated with these behaviors.
Methods
In 2021, using pooled cross-sectional 2015–2019 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance
System data, health behaviors (i.e., physical activity, diet, alcohol use, smoking,
sleep, and influenza immunization) of caregivers of patients with dementia (n=5,525), cancer (n=4,246), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease/emphysema (n=1,959), and diabetes (n=2,853) and noncaregivers (n=203,848) were compared. Relationships between caregiving intensity (e.g., hours,
type of tasks) and caregiver health behaviors were examined. Regression analyses were
used to compare groups.
Results
Compared with noncaregivers, caregiver groups were more likely to report engaging
in both risky (i.e., smoking, shorter sleep duration) and health-promoting (i.e.,
physical activity, vegetable consumption, abstaining from heavy drinking) behaviors,
whereas nonsignificant differences were observed for influenza immunization. Longer
caregiving hours and providing help with personal care were associated with poorer
health behaviors (e.g., shorter sleep duration). Few differences in health behaviors
were observed between caregivers of patients with dementia and other caregiver groups.
Conclusions
Results suggest that caregivers are more likely to engage in both risky and health-promoting
behaviors than noncaregivers. Furthermore, findings suggest that greater caregiving
responsibilities are associated with certain risky health behaviors. Findings support
the development and implementation of strategies to improve caregivers’ health behaviors
across disease contexts.
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Article Info
Publication History
Published online: September 24, 2021
Identification
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© 2021 American Journal of Preventive Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
