Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39080574›Full record

ArticleBMC public health2024

The association between household and family composition and mental health of the elderly: mediating role of lifestyle.

Mingxi Dang, Yaojing Chen, John S Ji, Yutong Zhang, Chuansheng Chen, Zhanjun Zhang

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in BMC public health, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 9 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
9citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

9 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. FIGO best practice recommendations for the mental health of women at menopausal age.International journal of gynaecology and obstetrics: the official organ of the International Federation of Gynaecology and Obstetrics · 2026
    Guideline
  2. Article
  3. Article
  4. Article
  5. Article
  6. Lifestyle changes after retirement: a Grounded Theory.Revista brasileira de enfermagem · 2025
    Article
  7. Article
  8. Article
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Mingxi DangState Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, P. R. China.
Yaojing ChenState Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, P. R. China. chenyaojing@bnu.edu.cn.ORCID 0000-0003-4418-6890
John S JiVanke School of Public Health, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100083, P. R. China.
Yutong ZhangDepartment of Health Policy and Management, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, 21205, USA.
Chuansheng ChenDepartment of Psychological Science, University of California, Irvine, CA, 92697, USA.
Zhanjun ZhangState Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, P. R. China. zhang_rzs@bnu.edu.cn.ORCID 0000-0002-6714-3263

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundMental health in the elderly has multiple determinants, and studies indicate household and family composition, economic status, and family support are key factors. However, these are difficult to modify, and better lifestyle for the elderly can be a possible intervention. The current study examined the mediating role of lifestyle in the association between these three types of the household and family composition (living alone, living with a spouse, and living with children) and mental health in older adults.

methodsWe studied 5,407 participants (58.7% female, age 45 + years) from the Beijing Aging Brain Rejuvenation Initiative Project. All participants underwent a battery of examinations to measure degree loneliness, depression, and global cognitive function. We also surveyed personal lifestyles. We used a mediation analysis to determine the relative contribution of each lifestyle factor on mental health outcomes.

resultsOlder adults living alone rarely participated in mental and social activities and often had irregular diets; those adults living with children spent most of their time caring for grandchildren and had irregular eating and sleeping schedules; those living with a spouse often engaged in a variety of leisure activities and had the best life habits. Mediation analyses showed that dietary and sleeping irregularity partially mediated the negative effects of living alone on mental health, and were moderated by age and gender.

conclusionsLiving with a spouse was associated with benefits for the mental health of middle-aged and older adults (especially older and female individuals), through modifying better lifestyles than those of individuals with the other two types of the household and family composition.

Indexed as

Family CharacteristicsLife StyleMental HealthAgedAged, 80 and overBeijingDepressionFemaleHumansLonelinessMaleMiddle AgedCognitive functionDepressionHousehold and family compositionLife stateLifestyleLonelinessOlder adults

Identifiers

PMID39080574
PMCPMC11290097

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.