Work Stressors and Asthma in Female and Male US Workers: Findings From the National Health Interview Survey

Background

Prior work has linked work stressors to asthma. However, research related to gender-specific associations remains sparse and yielded mixed results. We aimed to address this gap.

Methods

We drew on cross-sectional data from the 2015 National Health Interview Survey (individual-level response rate = 79.7%). Included were participants in employment who were aged 18–70 (n = 18,701). Work-to-family conflict, workplace bullying, and job insecurity were assessed as work stressors. Asthma was defined based on self-reports of a lifetime diagnosis by a doctor or other health professional. To account for the complex sampling design, variance estimation was used to compute weighted descriptive statistics and odds ratios (ORs) as well as corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CIs) using multivariable logistic regression. To test for interaction, interaction terms for work stressors and gender were included in additional models.

Results

In the full sample, work-to-family conflict, workplace bullying and job insecurity showed positive associations with asthma (OR = 1.20, 95%CI = 1.03–1.40; OR = 1.45, 95%CI = 1.17–1.80; and OR = 1.20, 95%CI = 0.99–1.45, respectively). We did not observe meaningful gender differences in the magnitudes of the ORs. All interaction terms were not statistically significant.

Conclusions

Work stressors were positively associated with asthma, but there was no evidence of gender differences. Prospective studies are needed to determine the potential temporal relation of these associations.