Spirituality, Quality of Life and Frailty in Community-Dwelling Adults ≥ 50 Years

Frailty is a known risk factor for morbidity and death among older adults. Frailty is also known to be directly related to levels of depression and stress. While the beneficial effects of religion and spirituality on depression and stress have been well documented, it is unknown if they can mitigate the effects of depression and stress on physical frailty. This cross-sectional analysis of 110 community-dwelling adults 50 years of age and older, characterized by a range of frailty levels, examined whether spirituality reduced the effect of less-than-optimal quality of life (QoL) as measured by depression and stress on risk for frailty. Results of multivariable logistic regression analyses showed that the interaction of spirituality and QoL was significantly related to the likelihood of frailty. At the lowest tertile of spirituality, poor and mid QoL (those with depression +/- stress) increased the odds of frailty (Odds Ratio [OR] = 8.23 and 95% Confidence Interval [CI] = 1.34-50.74 for depression and stress and OR = 8.75, 95% CI = 1.20-64.09 for depression only). With increased medical utilization and costs due to aging it is important to address psychosocial aspects associated with frailty to mitigate their effects. Spirituality appears to have a beneficial effect in lessening the negative impact of depression and stress upon physical frailty, which may help older adults maintain a more robust state of health. These findings are worth further examination.

Automated summary

The study found that spirituality plays a positive role in alleviating the negative impact of depression and stress on frailty among older adults, helping them maintain a healthier state.