RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN DEPRESSIVE SYMPTOMS, ANXIETY, ALCOHOL-CONSUMPTION, AND BLOOD-PRESSURE - RESULTS FROM THE CARDIA STUDY

Objectives: We examined cross-sectional relationships among depressive symptoms, anxiety, alcohol intake, and blood pressure, Test hypothese s were that: (1) alcohol intake, depressive symptoms, and anxiety woul d be positively related to blood pressure; (2) depressive symptoms and anxiety would have a stronger association with alcohol intake in Blac ks than in Whites; and (3) adjustment for differences in depressive sy mptoms, anxiety, and alcohol intake would reduce Black-White blood pre ssure differences. Methods: Study hypotheses were tested in a sample o f 4,352 Black and White adults, participating in the CARDIA study. Hyp otheses were tested using multiple linear regression, Results: Alcohol intake was positively related to systolic (p = 0.0001) and diastolic (p = 0.0004) blood pressure in men, but not in women. Depressive sympt oms and anxiety were unrelated to blood pressure, The relationship bet ween alcohol intake and depressive symptoms differed by race/ethnicity in men (p = 0.0719) and in women (p = 0.0002). Alcohol intake increas ed with increasing levels of depressive symptoms, but the increase was greater in Blacks than in Whites. After accounting for alcohol intake , body mass index, and other variables, Black-White blood pressure dif ferences were reduced in men, but not in women; most of the reduction was caused by body mass index. Conclusions: Blacks may respond differe ntly than Whites to psychological distress.