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Relationship Between Negative Mood and Health Behaviors in an Immigrant and Refugee Population

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Abstract

Immigrants experience an escalation of negative health behaviors after arrival to the United States. Negative mood is associated with poorer health behaviors in the general population; however, this relationship is understudied in immigrant populations. Adolescent (n = 81) and adult (n = 70) participants completed a health behavior survey for immigrant families using a community-based participatory research approach. Data was collected for mood, nutrition, and physical activity. Adolescents with positive mood drank less regular soda, and demonstrated more minutes, higher levels, and greater social support for physical activity (all ps < .05). Adults with positive mood reported more snacking on fruits/vegetables, greater self-efficacy for physical activity, and better physical well-being (all ps < .05). Negative mood was associated with low physical activity level and poor nutritional habits in adolescent and adult immigrants. Designing community-based programs offering strategies for mood management and healthy lifestyle change may be efficacious for immigrant populations.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank all RHCP community partners who contributed to the organization, implementation, and dissemination of this work. This publication was supported by NIH Grant No. R01 HL 111407 from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute and by CTSA Grant No. UL1 TR000135 from the National Center for Advancing Translational Science (NCATS). Its contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the NIH.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychiatry and Psychology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA

    Eleshia J. Morrison, Matthew M. Clark, Christi A. Patten & Leslie A. Sim

  2. Division of Primary Care Internal Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA

    Mark L. Wieland

  3. Center for Clinical and Translational Science, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA

    Jennifer A. Weis

  4. Division of Infectious Diseases, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA

    Marcelo M. K. Hanza & Irene G. Sia

  5. Department of Nursing, Winona State University, Rochester, MN, USA

    Sonja J. Meiers

  6. Division of Biostatistics and Informatics, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA

    Jeff A. Sloan & Paul J. Novotny

  7. Hawthorne Education Center, Rochester, MN, USA

    Julie A. Nigon

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  1. Eleshia J. Morrison
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  2. Matthew M. Clark
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  3. Mark L. Wieland
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  10. Leslie A. Sim
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  12. Irene G. Sia
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Irene G. Sia.

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Ethical Approval

All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards. This article does not contain any studies with animals performed by any of the authors.

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Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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Morrison, E.J., Clark, M.M., Wieland, M.L. et al. Relationship Between Negative Mood and Health Behaviors in an Immigrant and Refugee Population. J Immigrant Minority Health 19, 655–664 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10903-016-0506-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10903-016-0506-z

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