Health issues may affect grandmothers who are primary caregivers.

2004 DEC 2 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Grandmothers who are caregivers to grandchildren are more prone to stress and depressive symptoms than noncaregivers, according to the latest research from Case Western Reserve University's Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing.

Carol Musil, associate professor of nursing at Case, is leading an ongoing U.S. National Institutes of Health-funded study examining the effects of caregiving on the health of 450 Ohio grandmothers, as well as how it impacts their families.

In the 4-year study, which began in 2001 and will conclude in 2005, grandmothers who are the primary caregivers of children reported to researchers that they had experienced greater stress and more depressive symptoms than noncaregivers.

"These are older women who may have health needs of their own," said Musil. "So caring for a grandchild who may have health problems, developmental challenges, or an increased need for care creates additional stress for these grandparents."

The ages of the children may make a difference: younger children are physically demanding but older children often require more emotional and psychological energy.

The study includes comparison groups of grandmothers living in multigenerational homes and noncaregiver grandmothers, and examines the links between the women and their families in terms of overall stress, health, and well-being. Its goal is to understand how to help these women stay healthy as the aging population rises in the United States.

The other objective is to help identify factors, including skills such as resourcefulness, that may moderate the effects of stress on health regardless of caregiving responsibilities to grandchildren. Adequate emotional and physical support for these grandmothers, say researchers, will make a dramatic difference in their health and ability to provide care for their grandchildren.