Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39748406›Full record

ArticleBMC public health2025

Informal caregiving and mental health: results from the Belgian health interview survey 2013 and 2018.

Filip Van Droogenbroeck, Bram Spruyt, Pierre Gérain, Laura Van den Borre, Pierre Smith, Robby De Pauw, Sarah Dury

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Article in BMC public health, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

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2 · The registry

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3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed.

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4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Filip Van DroogenbroeckBrussels Institute for Social and Population Studies, Research Unit TOR, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium. Filip.Van.Droogenbroeck@vub.be.
Bram SpruytBrussels Institute for Social and Population Studies, Research Unit TOR, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium.
Pierre GérainFaculty of Psychology, Educational Sciences, and Speech Therapy, Université libre de Bruxelles, Brussels, Belgium.
Laura Van den BorreDepartment of epidemiology and public health, Sciensano, Brussels, Belgium.
Pierre SmithDepartment of epidemiology and public health, Sciensano, Brussels, Belgium.
Robby De PauwDepartment of epidemiology and public health, Sciensano, Brussels, Belgium.
Sarah DurySociety and Ageing Research Lab (SARLab), Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundDue to a globally ageing population, the demand for informal caregivers is increasing. This study investigates the socio-demographic profile of informal caregivers in Belgium and assesses the relationship between informal care (intensity and care recipients) and mental health, considering potential moderators like education, age, and gender.

methodsUsing population-based data from the 2013 and 2018 waves of the Belgian Health Interview Survey (N = 14,661), we conducted multivariate (multinomial/ordinal) logistic and linear regression analyses to examine the socio-demographic profile of informal caregivers and their psychological distress, measured through the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12).

resultsThe prevalence of informal caregiving increased from 10.0% in 2013 to 13.0% in 2018. Informal caregivers were predominantly female, middle-aged, and often had no paid job. High-intensity caregivers (over 20 h/week) experienced significantly higher psychological distress compared to non-caregivers, whereas lower-intensity caregivers did not. Additionally, while gender, age, and education were significant predictors of who becomes a caregiver, they did not moderate the relationship between caregiving and mental health.

conclusionsOur findings suggest that the stress of caregiving is more directly related to the nature and intensity of the caregiving tasks themselves rather than the demographic characteristics of the caregivers. Interventions aimed at reducing the adverse effects of caregiving might need to be universally applicable to all caregivers, focusing on reducing the intrinsic burdens of caregiving tasks rather than targeting demographic subgroups.

Indexed as

CaregiversHealth SurveysMental HealthAdolescentAdultAgedBelgiumFemaleHumansMaleMiddle AgedStress, PsychologicalYoung AdultGHQ-12Informal carePopulation studyPsychological distressPublic health

Identifiers

PMID39748406
PMCPMC11697620

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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.