Sexual orientation moderates the association between parental overprotection and stress biomarker profiles

ABSTRACT

Early experiences with parents may be particularly difficult for lesbian, gay and bisexual (LGB) individuals who face stigma that is linked to potentially distinct stress-related biobehavioural profiles. This study examined the association between parental bonding in relation to acute stress (cortisol reactivity) and chronic stress (allostatic load) in LGB and heterosexual individuals. The sample consisted of 87 healthy adults (mean [SD] age = 24.6 [0.6] years; LGB: n = 46, 43% women; and heterosexual n = 41, 49% women). Regressions tested the main effects of retrospectively assessed parental overprotection and care before the age of 16 on stress reactive cortisol (area under the curve) and allostatic load (indexed using 21 neuroendocrine, immune, metabolic and cardiovascular biomarkers), and whether sexual orientation status moderated this association. Results revealed that parental overprotection was associated with increased cortisol reactivity only for LGB participants, but not for heterosexual participants. By contrast, parental overprotection was associated with higher allostatic load only for heterosexual participants, but not for LGB participants. While the functional significance of this requires further study, these preliminary findings suggest that adaptive processes among LGB individuals may mitigate the negative effects of parental overprotection on markers of chronic stress.

KEYWORDS:

• Parental bonding
• sexual orientation
• allostatic load
• cortisol reactivity
• sexual minority stress

Acknowledgements

We thank our participants for their commitment to this demanding study. Many thanks go to Helen Findlay and Edouard Kouassi for performing biochemical assays. This project was possible with the nurse services of Louise Normandeau, Soaud Lahlafi and Carole Feltrin.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This study was funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research [Grant Number 222055] to S.J.L. who also held a Senior Investigator Chair on Gender and Mental Health from the Canadian Institute of Gender and Health (GSC 91039). R. P. Juster is currently the recipient of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research Banting Postdoctoral Fellowship.

Notes on contributors

Stephanie H. Cook

Dr. Stephanie H. Cook studies the pathways and mechanisms linking attachment, minority stress, and health among disadvantaged individuals. She examines how the inter- and intra- personal features of close relationships influence the health of racial/ethnic and sexual minorities.

Jens C. Pruessner

Dr. Jens C. Pruessner studies stress and aging, using various techniques ranging from the self-developed Montreal Imaging Stress Task, over the cortisol response to awakening, to protocols allowing the assessment of specific structures in the medial temporal lobes with help of Magnetic Resonance Imaging.

Sonia J. Lupien

Dr. Sonia J. Lupien studies the effects of stress throughout life. Her studies have shown that children are vulnerable to the effects of stress, young adults under acute stress show impairments in memory and emotional regulation, and finally that chronic stress among older adults is associated with hippocampal atrophy, a region involved in learning and memory processes.

Robert-Paul Juster

Dr. Robert-Paul Juster's research focuses on chronic stress among diverse social groups using transdisciplinary approaches that tease apart biological sex and socio-cultural gender. He has developed expertise in measuring chronic stress known as allostatic load that describes the physiological dysregulations related to chronic stress and unhealthy behaviors.