Perceived mental stress in women associated with psychosomatic symptoms, but not mortality: observations from the Population Study of Women in Gothenburg, Sweden

Figures & data

Table 1 Mental stress question: the women were asked by a physician whether they had had a feeling of mental stress for a month or longer, including tension, fear, anxiety or sleep disturbances connected with conflict in the family, at work etc

Period of mental stress
Have you experienced any period of mental stress (1 month or more), and with mental stress we mean that you have been
Irritable
Tense
Nervous
Anxious
Afraid
Anguished
Sleepless
Connected with concern for
Your work
Your health
Your family
Conflict with the people around you (at home, at work)
Check one
0 = Never experienced mental stress
1 = Experienced mental stress, but not during the last 5 years
2 = Occasionally experienced mental stress during the last 5 years
3 = Experienced mental stress several times during the last 5 years
4 = Experienced mental stress constantly during the last year
5 = Experienced mental stress constantly during the last 5 years

Table 2 Mental stress and association to socio-demographic, anthropometric and lifestyle variables, cross-sectionally in 1968–1969

Periods of mental stress	Mean (SD)
	Level 0–1	Level 2	Level 3–5
	No period of mental stress during the last 5 years (n = 934)	Some periods of stress during the last 5 years (n = 204)	Several periods of stress or permanent stress (n = 277)
Age (years)	46.9 (6.2)	46.7 (6.3)	47.1 (6.2)
SBP (mmHg)	134.5 (22.0)	131.9 (21.1)	131.5 (22.6)*
DBP (mmHg)	86.1 (10.9)	84.7 (9.8)	85.0 (11.5)
BMI (kg/m^2)	24.2 (3.8)	23.8 (3.6)	23.9 (3.8)
WHR (cm/cm)	0.74 (0.05)	0.74 (0.05)	0.74 (0.06)
S-triglycerides (mmol/L)	1.22 (0.62)	1.19 (0.48)	1.31 (0.60)*
Total cholesterol (mmol/L)	6.85 (1.24)	6.83 (1.04)	6.93 (1.22)
Blood glucose (mmol/L)	4.17 (0.97)	4.05 (0.72)	4.05 (0.68)*
Total income in the household (SEK)	39,700 (21,100)	38,000 (18,600)	34,100 (23,800)***
	n (%)
Higher education	266 (29)	74 (37)	86 (31)
Grown up in town	649 (70)	159 (78)	197 (71)
Married	757 (81)	154 (76)	187 (68)***
Children (yes/no)	750 (81)	160 (80)	224 (81)
Living in a house	216 (23)	35 (17)	41 (15)**
Working outside home	596 (64)	132 (65)	153 (56)*
Higher social class	591 (63)	136 (67)	171 (62)
High LTPA#	771 (83)	168 (82)	215 (78)
High OPA##	263 (28)	69 (34)	86 (31)
Ever smoking	389 (42)	99 (49)	156 (56)***
Current smoking	345 (37)	92 (45)	137 (49)***

Notes:

* P < 0.05;

** P < 0.01;

*** P < 0.001 significance level for test of trend across mental stress categories, linear regression for logarithms of continuous variables, Cochran–Armitage test of trend for binary variables;

# leisure time physical activity;

## occupational physical activity.

Abbreviations: LTPA, leisure time physical activity; OPA, occupational physical activity; SEK, Swedish Crones; WHR, waist hip ratio; BMI, body mass index; SBP, systolic blood pressure; DMP, diastolic blood pressure; SD, standard deviation.

Table 3 Perception of mental stress at baseline, prevalence of symptoms in 1968 and incidence of symptoms in 1974

	1968 (cross-sectional data)			1974 (prospective data)
	n68	2 vs none	3–5 vs none	n74	2 vs none	3–5 vs none
		OR (95% CI)	OR (95% CI)		OR (95% CI)	OR (95% CI)
Abdominal symptoms	401	1.29 (0.92–1.80)	1.94 (1.46–2.57)*	139	1.02 (0.59–1.77)	2.19 (1.42–3.39)*
		1.28 (0.92–1.80)	1.85 (1.39–2.46)		1.01 (0.58–1.75)	2.15 (1.39–3.34)*
Obstructive symptoms	308	1.30 (0.91–1.85)	1.22 (0.89–1.68)	109	1.97 (1.18–3.29)	1.38 (0.83–2.29)
		1.23 (0.86–1.78)	1.10 (0.79–1.53)		1.93 (1.15–3.23)	1.28 (0.77–2.15)
Headache/migraine	402	1.25 (0.89–1.75)	2.00 (1.48–2.61)*	148	0.92 (0.53–1.59)	2.27 (1.48–3.48)**
		1.29 (0.92–1.81)	2.04 (1.53–2.72)*		0.92 (0.53–1.59)¶	2.27 (1.48–3.48)**¶
Frequent infections	130	1.68 (1.03–2.75)	1.93 (1.26–2.95)	47	1.84 (0.84–4.03)	2.21 (1.12–4.36)
		1.63 (0.99–2.68)	1.75 (1.14–2.70)		1.84 (0.84–4.03)¶	2.21 (1.12–4.36)¶
Musculoskeletal symptoms	564	1.16 (0.85–1.58)	1.70 (1.30–2.23)*	209	1.31 (0.84–2.04)	1.21 (0.78–1.86)
		1.16 (0.85–1.58)¶	1.70 (1.30–2.23)*¶		1.29 (0.83–2.01)	1.14 (0.74–1.77)
Hypertension	290	0.72 (0.48–1.10)	0.86 (0.61–1.23)	148	1.16 (0.72–1.87)	0.74 (0.45–1.20)
		0.78 (0.50–1.19)	0.89 (0.62–1.28)		1.20 (0.74–1.96)	0.77 (0.47–1.27)

Notes: Intermediate (level 2) and high level of mental stress (level 3–5) was compared with no experience of mental stress during the last 5 years (level 0–1). The upper line gives the result for mental stress in a model adjusted for age only, the lower line for the adjusted model, where covariates where selected from smoking (former, current, ever), OPA, LTPA, WHR, BMI by stepwise selection. The number of individuals with symptoms at baseline 1968 is denoted by n68; n74 gives the number of women with symptoms in 1974 among all women without symptoms at baseline.

* P < 0.05;

** P < 0.01 significance level for test of mental stress level 3–5 vs level 2;

¶ no covariates were selected in addition to age and stress level.

Abbreviations: LTPA, leisure time physical activity; OPA, occupational physical activity; WHR, waist hip ratio; BMI, body mass index; OR, odds ratio; CI, confidence interval.

Figure 1 Prevalence of mental stress during the last 5 years (level 2–5) versus year of examination longitudinally for each of the different birth cohorts (A) and versus age at which mental stress was reported (B).