Health Disparities Among Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Older Adults: Results From a Population-Based Study

By K. Fredriksen-Goldsen, Hyun-Jun Kim, S. Barkan, A. Muraco, Charles P. Hoy-Ellis. American Journal of Public Health, 2013

831 citations recorded by the source corpus.

Objectives We investigated health disparities among lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) adults aged 50 years and older. Methods We analyzed data from the 2003–2010 Washington State Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (n = 96 992) on health outcomes, chronic conditions, access to care, behaviors, and screening by gender and sexual orientation with adjusted logistic regressions. Results LGB older adults had higher risk of disability, poor mental health, smoking, and excessive drinking than did heterosexuals. Lesbians and bisexual women had higher risk of cardiovascular disease and obesity, and gay and bisexual men had higher risk of poor physical health and living alone than did heterosexuals. Lesbians reported a higher rate of excessive drinking than did bisexual women; bisexual men reported a higher rate of diabetes and a lower rate of being tested for HIV than did gay men. Conclusions Tailored interventions are needed to address the health disparities and unique health needs of LGB older adults. Research across the life course is needed to better understand health disparities by sexual orientation and age, and to assess subgroup differences within these communities.

Subfields: Social Psychology

View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/654d071e0d4250f6403e0691a4a92fb28956bce1

How researchers see this paper

The researchers whose trusted networks rank it highest, strongest advocate first. Every researcher gets a different order.

In Social Psychology

1. M. Ilan
2. M. Plöderl
3. S. Choi
4. P. Tremblay

Citations in the corpus

• Mental health of sexual minorities. A systematic review (2015, result): “…et al., 2007; Case et al., 2004; Cochran et al., 2012; Diamant et al., 2000; Dilley et al., 2010; Drabble et al., 2005; Ford & Jasinski, 2006; Fredriksen-Goldsen et al., 2013; Gruskin & Gordon, 2006; Hughes et al. 2010b; Julien et al., 2008; Lhomond & Saurel- Cubizolles, 2006; Mercer et al.,…”
• Psychological well-being among transgender and genderqueer individuals (2016, result): “…higher levels of psychological distress than their cisgender sexual minority counterparts, as has been shown in previous research (e.g., Bockting et al., 2013; Budge et al., 2013; Dargie et al., 2014; Fredriksen-Goldsen et al., 2013; Reisner, Greyak, et al., 2015; Reisner, Vetters, et al., 2015).”
• A systematic review of reviews on the prevalence of anxiety disorders in adult populations (2016, background): “Surprisingly, only one review (King et al. 2008) examined LGB groups, despite this population being at high risk for poor health (Fredriksen-Goldsen et al. 2013).”
• LGBT Aging: A Review of Research Findings, Needs, and Policy Implications (2016, background): “Health Behaviors LGBT older adults also have a higher prevalence of engaging in risky health behavior, such as smoking and excessive alcohol consumption compared to heterosexual older adults (See Figure 2; Fredriksen-Goldsen et al., 2013a).”