Dyslipidaemia and impaired well-being in middle-aged women reporting low Sense of Coherence. The Women's Health in the Lund Area (WHLA) Study.

OBJECTIVE

A low Sense of Coherence (SOC) is a concept related to a feeling of ill health. Not much is known about possible relationships between SOC and biological factors.

SETTING

Population-based study of middle-aged women.

SUBJECTS AND METHODS

Four-hundred-and-fifty women participated as a subgroup of a larger study of cardiovascular risk factor screening. A self-administered questionnaire with 29 questions related to SOC was completed in addition to questions on social background factors and medical history.

RESULTS

The mean score of SOC was 150.9 (SD 23.4). HDL cholesterol was lower (p < 0.05) and triglyceride levels higher (p < 0.05) in women with low SOC (1.5 and 2.1 mmol/L) compared to women with medium (1.8 and 1.4 mmol/L) or high SOC (1.7 and 1.5 mmol/L). In multiple regression analysis, a low HDL cholesterol level was still significantly associated with low SOC (p < 0.05) after adjustment for possible confounders. Women reporting low SOC were further characterised by a higher proportion of subjects with regular clinical visits for health care (49% vs 35% and 29%).

CONCLUSIONS

Middle-aged women reporting low SOC showed lower HDL cholesterol and higher triglyceride levels, and reported more clinical visits and medical symptoms than women with higher SOC.