December 17, 2013
The fact that caring for an older or disabled loved one can cause stress and depression is often written about, but a new study shows that being a caregiver might actually make you healthier. David Roth, director of the Johns Hopkins Center on Aging and Health, has new data that may support the notion that caregivers are in fact healthier.
Roth’s team inserted key questions into a large national stroke study in which they were able to compare about 3,500 family caregivers older than 45 with non-caregivers of the same age, gender, education level and self-reported health. After a six-year follow-up, Roth’s team found that the non-caregivers had significantly higher mortality rates.
Read more about this intriguing study that could put a new, more positive spin on the lives of caregivers.