Biopsychosocial science and medicine最新文献

{"title":"Caregiving Reconsidered: How Confounding Helping with Suffering has Obscured a Major Health-Promoting Behavior.","authors":"Naomi I Eisenberger, Flora Blandl, Maria Naclerio","doi":"10.1097/PSY.0000000000001525","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1097/PSY.0000000000001525","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The widely cited claim that informal caregiving (e.g., providing care to a spouse or parent with dementia) increases mortality risk has shaped public policy, media narratives, and clinical practice for over two decades. However, this claim originated from a single study and multiple other population-based studies have found the opposite: that caregiving is associated with reduced mortality. We argue that the disconnect between what is widely accepted and what the data actually show arises because the construct of \"caregiving\" confounds two psychologically and physiologically distinct experiences: (1) prosocial helping behavior, which recruits the mammalian caregiving system and can attenuate physiological stress responses and (2) chronic exposure to a loved one's deterioration and ultimate passing, which can trigger empathic distress and grief and enhance physiological stress responses. Unfortunately, the field has tied the negative effects of caregiving to the act of helping others rather than the stress or grief of witnessing a loved one's decline. As a consequence, the characterization of caregiving as hazardous to health has discouraged researchers in health psychology and biopsychosocial medicine from investigating prosocial behavior as a modifiable health-promoting behavior, leaving an entire domain of potential health-promoting interventions underexplored. Drawing on neuroscience evidence that prosocial behavior engages the caregiving system and experimental evidence that prosocial behavior can reduce physiological stress responses, we present an integrated framework and call for systematic investigation of prosocial behavior as a behavioral determinant of health.</p>","PeriodicalId":520402,"journal":{"name":"Biopsychosocial science and medicine","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-09-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148932419","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Emotion Regulation in Functional Neurological Disorder: A Multimethod Comparison of Intra- and Interpersonal Strategies.","authors":"Inga Niedtfeld, Johanna Hepp, Sabine Schellhaas, Astrid Steffen-Klatt, Dominik Klaasen van Husen, Valentin Held","doi":"10.1097/PSY.0000000000001523","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1097/PSY.0000000000001523","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objective: </strong>Emotion regulation (ER) difficulties are frequently reported in individuals with Functional Neurological Disorder (FND), yet most evidence derives from self-report data, and little is known about intra- and interpersonal ER preference and success under controlled conditions.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>In a preregistered multimethod investigation, a web-based questionnaire assessed habitual ER difficulties and interpersonal ER in 109 individuals with FND and 88 healthy controls (HC). A laboratory component, conducted in a subsample of the questionnaire participants (33 individuals with FND and 33 HC), comprised two experimental paradigms examining ER choice and ER success during intrapersonal regulation (reappraisal vs. distraction) and interpersonal regulation (self- vs. other-guided reappraisal). In the experimental paradigms, ER success was indexed by reductions in subjective arousal and by startle reflex magnitude as a measure of defensive psychophysiological responding.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>In Study 1, individuals with FND reported greater ER difficulties, higher alexithymia, more childhood trauma, and reduced use of interpersonal ER compared to HC. In Study 2A, stimulus intensity predicted ER choice, with a shift toward distraction at higher intensities, while no significant group differences in intrapersonal ER choice or success emerged. In Study 2B, higher stimulus intensity was associated with a lower probability of choosing self-directed reappraisal over interpersonal regulation, and individuals with FND showed a non-significant trend toward reduced preference for interpersonal regulation. Interpersonal reappraisal was associated with lower startle amplitudes than intrapersonal reappraisal, consistent with lower defensive physiological responding during interpersonal regulation. Across paradigms, ER success did not significantly differ between groups.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>FND was characterized by pronounced self-reported intra- and interpersonal ER difficulties. The laboratory data did not provide robust evidence for group differences in momentary ER implementation, but these null effects should be interpreted cautiously given reduced power for interaction effects. Interpersonal ER may represent a clinically relevant domain in FND and warrants replication in adequately powered samples.</p>","PeriodicalId":520402,"journal":{"name":"Biopsychosocial science and medicine","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-09-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148908573","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Respiratory Sinus Arrhythmia Moderates the Association Between Adverse Childhood Experiences and Depressive Symptoms Through Stress Appraisals and Perseverative Thinking.","authors":"Sara Matovic, Justin Moase, Linda Booij, Jean-Philippe Gouin","doi":"10.1097/PSY.0000000000001504","DOIUrl":"10.1097/PSY.0000000000001504","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objective: </strong>Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) confer risk for depressive symptoms in adulthood, potentially through maladaptive cognitive-affective responses to stress. The neurovisceral integration model suggests that resting respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA), an index of parasympathetic regulation, shapes capacity to regulate cognitive-affective stress responses. The present study tested whether stress-related appraisals and perseverative thinking mediated the association between ACEs and depressive symptoms, whether RSA moderated these pathways, and whether effects varied under chronic caregiving stress.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Participants were 222 middle-aged mothers (mean age = 46.83, SD = 6.03) experiencing higher (n = 125) and lower (n = 97) caregiving stress. ACEs and depressive symptoms were assessed with the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire and CES-D. Perceived threat, perceived control, and perseverative thinking were measured through daily diaries. Resting RSA, CES-D, and daily measures were collected at 3 time points across 30 months.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Lower RSA strengthened the association between ACEs and depressive symptoms ( b = 0.269, SE = 0.060, p < .001). Lower perceived control [ b = 0.022, 95% CI (0.001, 0.049)] and greater perseverative thinking [ b = 0.072, 95% CI (0.020, 0.128)] mediated the association between ACEs and depressive symptoms; lower RSA strengthened associations between ACEs and these mediators. Higher ACEs were associated with greater perceived threat among mothers with higher caregiving stress and lower RSA ( b = 0.014, SE = 0.004, p < .001).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Early adversity is associated with depressive symptoms through stress-related cognitive-affective pathways. Lower RSA may reflect diminished regulatory capacity that strengthens associations between ACEs and maladaptive cognitive-affective stress responses.</p>","PeriodicalId":520402,"journal":{"name":"Biopsychosocial science and medicine","volume":" ","pages":"622-632"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148431845","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Racism-Related Concern for Children and Central Hemodynamics in African American Women: A Longitudinal Study.","authors":"Zachary T Martin, Jelaina Shipman-Lacewell, Christy L Erving, Lori S Hoggard, Nicole D Fields, Shivika Udaipuria, Rachel Parker, Raphiel J Murden, Jordan E Parker, Bianca Booker, LaKeia Culler, Reneé H Moore, Seegar Swanson, Jordan S Wilson, Emma Barinas-Mitchell, Arshed A Quyyumi, Viola Vaccarino, Tené T Lewis","doi":"10.1097/PSY.0000000000001495","DOIUrl":"10.1097/PSY.0000000000001495","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objective: </strong>African American women experience disproportionate cardiovascular disease risk, and altered central hemodynamics signal early vascular aging. For African American mothers, concern about their children's exposure to racism represents a salient psychosocial stressor, but its vascular consequences are unclear. We examined whether greater racism‑related Concern for Children (CFC) was associated with adverse longitudinal changes in central hemodynamics.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>African American mothers aged 30 to 46 years ( n =236) underwent assessments of central systolic blood pressure (cSBP), augmentation index (AIx), pulse pressure amplification (PPA), and pulse wave velocity (PWV; n =205) at baseline and 4±1 years later. CFC was measured continuously (range: 0 to 24) and categorically (high vs. low). Multivariable linear regression models examined associations between CFC and changes in central hemodynamics, adjusting for baseline values and sociodemographic, clinical, and psychosocial covariates. Logistic regression evaluated CFC and odds of newly developed high‑risk PPA (PPA<1.3).</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>In fully adjusted models, greater CFC was associated with larger increases in AIx (b=0.30, 95% CI [0.11, 0.48]; P =.002). At follow‑up, women with high CFC had AIx values 3.9 percentage points higher than those with low CFC ( P =.005). CFC was also associated with declining PPA (b=-0.003, 95% CI [-0.005, -0.001]; P =.024) and greater odds of newly developed high‑risk PPA (OR=1.08, 95% CI [1.01, 1.15]; P =.033). No associations were observed for cSBP or PWV.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Greater racism‑related Concern for Children is associated with signs of early vascular aging in African American mothers, highlighting the cardiovascular consequences of racism‑related maternal stress.</p>","PeriodicalId":520402,"journal":{"name":"Biopsychosocial science and medicine","volume":" ","pages":"592-602"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147978415","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Childhood Economic Mobility and Systemic Inflammation Among Men Who Experienced Low Income in Toddlerhood: The Moderating Role of Trait Hostility.","authors":"Emily J Jones, Portia Miller, Daniel S Shaw, Elizabeth Votruba-Drzal, Anna L Marsland","doi":"10.1097/PSY.0000000000001507","DOIUrl":"10.1097/PSY.0000000000001507","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objective: </strong>Childhood economic upward mobility (ie, increases in family income across childhood) may attenuate links between childhood poverty and systemic inflammation in adulthood, the extent of which may vary depending on inter-individual differences in personality characteristics, including hostility.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Men who experienced low income in toddlerhood (N=171) were followed prospectively into adulthood. Annual family income was collected 12 times when men were 1.5 to 17 years old. Men completed the Cook-Medley Hostility Scale and had their fasting blood drawn to measure circulating levels of C-reactive protein (CRP) at age 32. Multiple linear regression analyses examined main and moderation effects of childhood economic upward mobility and adult hostility on CRP levels adjusting for income at 1.5 years, race, parent educational attainment, and adult income, education, waist circumference, and smoking status.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Main effects were nonsignificant, but an interaction effect emerged. Counter to expectations, childhood economic upward mobility related to greater adult CRP as trait hostility decreased ( β =-0.203, P =.018). Simple slope analyses further revealed that childhood economic upward mobility was positively associated with CRP among men lower in hostility ( β =0.23, SE=0.09, P =.020) but was unrelated to CRP among men higher in hostility. Results of post hoc sensitivity analyses are also discussed.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Counterintuitive findings suggest that for men who experience poverty in toddlerhood, the association between childhood economic upward mobility and adult CRP may be nuanced and even in the positive direction for men low in hostility, which aligns with work on unintended health consequences of upward mobility.</p>","PeriodicalId":520402,"journal":{"name":"Biopsychosocial science and medicine","volume":" ","pages":"608-621"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148538034","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Perceived Social Cohesion Moderates the Association Between Neighborhood Socioeconomic Deprivation and Epigenetic Aging.","authors":"Koichi Sakakibara, Stephanie Hernandez, Jourdyn A Lawrence, Anthony Zannas, Adolfo Cuevas, Ichiro Kawachi, Christopher L Coe, Agus Surachman","doi":"10.1097/PSY.0000000000001500","DOIUrl":"10.1097/PSY.0000000000001500","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objective: </strong>We investigated the association between socioeconomic contexts and biological aging among US older adults, and whether social cohesion buffers the impact of socioeconomic deprivation on epigenetic aging.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A pooled cross-sectional analysis was conducted using data from the Midlife in the United States (MIDUS) wave 2 and Refresher projects (n = 1111). DNA methylation-based epigenetic aging was measured using epigenetic clocks (Hannum, Horvath, Horvath skin and blood, PhenoAge, and GrimAge2) and the pace of aging (DunedinPACE). The 2015 Area Deprivation Index was used to assess socioeconomic deprivation. Neighborhood perceived social cohesion was determined from 3 components of social capital: social trust, norms of mutual assistance, and a sense of belonging. Post hoc moderation analyses were conducted to assess the buffering effects of social cohesion on the adverse impact of socioeconomic deprivation on accelerated aging. Analyses were adjusted for socioeconomic, demographic, and behavioral characteristics.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Higher deprivation was associated with faster GrimAge2 epigenetic age acceleration (EAA; B = 0.03, SE = 0.01, Beta = 0.16, 95% CI = 0.02, 0.05) and DunedinPACE pace of aging (B = 0.001, SE = 0.00, Beta = 0.21, 95% CI = 0.00, 0.001). Perceived social cohesion appeared to buffer the adverse impact of socioeconomic deprivation on EAA GrimAge2 (B = -0.02, SE = 0.01, Beta = -0.09, 95% CI = -0.03, -0.01) and DunedinPACE (B = -0.00, SE = 0.00, Beta = -0.06, 95% CI: -0.00, -0.00).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Both deprivation and cohesion were associated with epigenetic aging. Buffering effects of cohesion on the association between deprivation and epigenetic aging were evident.</p>","PeriodicalId":520402,"journal":{"name":"Biopsychosocial science and medicine","volume":" ","pages":"633-643"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148008464","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Article Summaries for September 2026 Biopsychosocial Science and Medicine, Volume 88, Issue 7.","authors":"","doi":"10.1097/PSY.0000000000001520","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1097/PSY.0000000000001520","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":520402,"journal":{"name":"Biopsychosocial science and medicine","volume":"88 7","pages":"581"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148868761","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Severity-related Accelerated Aging, Hippocampal Volume, and CLDN5 DNA Methylation.","authors":"Erika J Wolf, Xiang Zhao, Shira Hao, Chris Lawhorn, Jack Carbaugh, Catherine B Fortier, William P Milberg, Mark W Logue, Mark W Miller","doi":"10.1097/PSY.0000000000001501","DOIUrl":"10.1097/PSY.0000000000001501","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objective: </strong>The claudin-5 ( CLDN5) gene is critical for blood-brain barrier integrity and may link traumatic stress, accelerated aging, and neurological disease. Building on prior research showing associations between trauma exposure and PTSD with CLDN5 DNA methylation (DNAm), we tested whether candidate CLDN5 DNAm loci were associated with advanced epigenetic aging in blood and brain tissue and with hippocampal volume.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A total of 1302 trauma-exposed individuals (M age = 44.23, SD = 13.71; 76% males) underwent psychiatric diagnostic interviews and blood draws for obtaining epi/genetic information; 473 underwent magnetic resonance imaging of the brain. Data from 109 PTSD brain bank decedents with DNAm from ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) were also examined (M age-at-death = 45.20, SD = 14.21; 62% males).</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>All candidate loci were associated with metrics of epigenetic age in blood ( p-adj range: .0396 to 4.5e-05), and these associations largely extended to postmortem vmPFC. There was an indirect association between PTSD severity and CLDN5 DNAm in blood at cg21872764 through GrimAge residuals (indirect β = 0.033, p = .040) that was diminished when the direct PTSD association was modeled. The CLDN5 probe cg17411190 in blood was negatively related to left and right hippocampal volume ( p-adj = .042) and with volume of multiple hippocampal substructures. The association between PTSD severity and hippocampal volume was indirect through blood DNAm at cg17411190 (indirect β = -0.011, p = .045).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>PTSD severity-related accelerated aging may be associated with altered CLDN5 DNAm, which may signal neurodegeneration, such as reduced hippocampal volume. CLDN5 DNAm in blood may serve as a useful proxy for brain CLDN5 DNAm. Given that prior environmental enrichment and antidepressant studies show initial efficacy in altering CLDN5 expression, future studies could evaluate if PTSD treatment alters CLDN5 epigenetics and reduces risk for neurodegeneration.</p>","PeriodicalId":520402,"journal":{"name":"Biopsychosocial science and medicine","volume":" ","pages":"644-654"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13317736/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148261096","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The Impact of the 2024 Election on Sleep, Psychological Well-being, and Political Cognitive-emotional Burden Among First-time Young Adult Voters.","authors":"Tiffany Yip, Enrique Dimagiba, Zhenqiang Zhao, Angela Zhao, Kyle Lorenzo, Jinjin Yan, Heining Cham, David Chae, Cindy Liu, Mona El Sheikh","doi":"10.1097/PSY.0000000000001496","DOIUrl":"10.1097/PSY.0000000000001496","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objective: </strong>To examine the sleep, psychological well-being, and political cognitive-emotional burden of the 2024 US presidential election on first-time young adult voters.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>First-time young adult voters ( N =186, mean age 20.57 years, SD=0.85) completed an 11-day daily diary and actigraphy protocol spanning the days before, during, and after the November 2024 US presidential election. Daily measures included sleep efficiency (actigraphy), positive and negative affect, distress, rumination, and political concealment. The majority of participants voted for Harris ( n =153); a smaller subset reported voting for other candidates.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Across the full sample, sleep efficiency and positive affect declined, and distress, negative affect, rumination, and political concealment increased in the days leading up to the election. Negative health effects intensified on the day after the election, with non-Harris voters reporting better health than Harris voters during this period. Most health indicators returned to pre-election levels by the end of the study; positive mood, however, remained lower and negative mood remained higher than pre-election baselines.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>The 2024 national election was associated with measurable, time-limited declines in sleep and mental health among first-time young adult voters, with election-day and postelection effects patterning by candidate preference. Most indicators recovered within days, but mood disturbances persisted beyond the study window, suggesting that elections function as acute political cognitive stressors with lingering affective consequences for newly enfranchised young adults.</p>","PeriodicalId":520402,"journal":{"name":"Biopsychosocial science and medicine","volume":" ","pages":"582-591"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148261086","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Characterizing Early Postpartum Cardiovascular Health Among Black Women.","authors":"Kelsey E Magee, Kate E Keenan, Ashley Stiller, Allysa D Quick, Melanie Custodio, Sierra Strickland, Lana Edwards, Alison E Hipwell, Michele D Levine","doi":"10.1097/PSY.0000000000001505","DOIUrl":"10.1097/PSY.0000000000001505","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objective: </strong>Cardiovascular disease contributes to the high rates of postpartum morbidity and mortality among Black American women. The American Heart Association's Life's Essential 8 (LE8) metric, comprising 4 health behaviors and 4 objectively measured health factors, has been used to characterize cardiovascular health (CVH) in general adult populations and during pregnancy. Characterizing early postpartum CVH among Black women using the LE8 metric is an important step towards understanding CVH risk during a sensitive period.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Ninety-five Black women ( MAge =28.3 years, SD =1.52) reported on LE8 health behaviors and completed anthropometric measures and a venous blood draw to measure LE8 health factors in the first 6 months following delivery. Data were used to generate the LE8 component scores, total LE8, and LE8 health behavior and factor scores, ranging from \"low\" (0 to 49) to \"high\" (80 to 100) CVH.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Mean total LE8 CVH was in the \"moderate\" range ( M =68.5, SD =14.1), with scores ranging from 28.8 (\"low\" CVH) to 93.8 (\"high\" CVH). The range of the total LE8 scores reflects the degree of variability between the LE8 component scores. Participants scored higher on LE8 health factors ( M= 71.6, SD =17.3) than health behaviors ( M= 65.4, SD =18.7; paired t =2.70, p =.008). Sociodemographic factors were unrelated to postpartum CVH.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>The LE8 metric captured variability in early postpartum CVH among a community sample of Black women. Early postpartum LE8 indices could provide a useful indicator of current health and help to inform health screening efforts to identify those at-risk, although longitudinal studies are urgently needed.</p>","PeriodicalId":520402,"journal":{"name":"Biopsychosocial science and medicine","volume":" ","pages":"603-607"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148400002","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}