TY - JOUR
T1 - First-generation College Students Have Greater Systemic Inflammation than Continuing-Generation College Students Following the Initial College Transition
T2 - A Brief Report
AU - Jones, Emily J.
AU - Schreier, Hannah M.C.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© Society of Behavioral Medicine 2022. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: [email protected].
PY - 2023/1/2
Y1 - 2023/1/2
N2 - BACKGROUND: First-generation college students ("first-gens") are often at a disadvantage socially and academically; whether they are at risk physiologically is unknown despite the well-established link between greater education and better long-term health. PURPOSE: To examine whether first-gens have higher levels of cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk markers relative to continuing-generation college students ("continuing-gens"). METHODS: A panel of CVD risk markers was assessed among 87 emerging adults (41 first-gens) twice over their first year of college. RESULTS: Compared to continuing-gens, first-gens had greater systemic inflammation (composite of averaged z-scores for C-reactive protein and interleukin-6; B = 0.515, SE = 0.171, p = .003) during the fall but not spring semester (p > .05). Associations were independent of family home ownership and childhood adversity, even though first-gens were more likely to live in rental homes and reported riskier home environments. Lower childhood subjective social status (SSS) accounted for greater systemic inflammation among first-gens as evidenced by an indirect effect of college generation status on systemic inflammation through childhood SSS (a1b1 = 0.261, bootstrapped SE = 0.103, 95% boot CI [0.078, 0.482]). There were no differences in metabolic risk and latent virus regulation by college generation status in either semester (p > .10). CONCLUSIONS: This is the first study to find that first-gens have higher levels of systemic inflammation than continuing-gens following the college transition and that childhood SSS may be one explanatory pathway. First-gens may benefit from university resources that address social class differences, which should be provided early on so that first-gens can reap the health-relevant benefits of higher education, at least in the short term.
AB - BACKGROUND: First-generation college students ("first-gens") are often at a disadvantage socially and academically; whether they are at risk physiologically is unknown despite the well-established link between greater education and better long-term health. PURPOSE: To examine whether first-gens have higher levels of cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk markers relative to continuing-generation college students ("continuing-gens"). METHODS: A panel of CVD risk markers was assessed among 87 emerging adults (41 first-gens) twice over their first year of college. RESULTS: Compared to continuing-gens, first-gens had greater systemic inflammation (composite of averaged z-scores for C-reactive protein and interleukin-6; B = 0.515, SE = 0.171, p = .003) during the fall but not spring semester (p > .05). Associations were independent of family home ownership and childhood adversity, even though first-gens were more likely to live in rental homes and reported riskier home environments. Lower childhood subjective social status (SSS) accounted for greater systemic inflammation among first-gens as evidenced by an indirect effect of college generation status on systemic inflammation through childhood SSS (a1b1 = 0.261, bootstrapped SE = 0.103, 95% boot CI [0.078, 0.482]). There were no differences in metabolic risk and latent virus regulation by college generation status in either semester (p > .10). CONCLUSIONS: This is the first study to find that first-gens have higher levels of systemic inflammation than continuing-gens following the college transition and that childhood SSS may be one explanatory pathway. First-gens may benefit from university resources that address social class differences, which should be provided early on so that first-gens can reap the health-relevant benefits of higher education, at least in the short term.
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U2 - 10.1093/abm/kaac008
DO - 10.1093/abm/kaac008
M3 - Article
C2 - 35445688
AN - SCOPUS:85144597662
SN - 0883-6612
VL - 57
SP - 86
EP - 92
JO - Annals of behavioral medicine : a publication of the Society of Behavioral Medicine
JF - Annals of behavioral medicine : a publication of the Society of Behavioral Medicine
IS - 1
ER -