Does private religious activity prolong survival? A six-year follow-up study of 3,851 older adults

Background. Previous studies have linked higher religious attendance and lo nger survival. In this study. we examine the relationship between survival and private religious activity. Methods. A probability sample of elderly community-dwelling adults in North Carolina was assembled in 1986 and followed for 6 years. Level of particip ation in private religious activities such as prayer, meditation, or Bible study was assessed by self-report at baseline, along with a wide variety of sociodemographic and health variables. The main outcome was time (days) to death or censoring. Results. During a median 6.3-year follow-up period, 1,137 subjects (29.5%) died. Those reporting rarely to never participating in private religious ac tivity had an increased relative hazard of dying over more frequent partici pants, but this hazard did not remain significant for the sample as a whole after adjustment for demographic and health variables. When the sample was divided into activity of daily living (ADL) impaired and unimpaired. the e ffect did not remain significant for the ADL impaired group after controlli ng For demographic variables (hazard ratio [RH] 1.11. 95% confidence interv al [CI] 0.91-1.35). However, the increased hazard remained significant for the ADL unimpaired group even after controlling for demographic and health variables (RH 1.63, 95% CI 1.20-2.21), and this effect persisted despite co ntrolling for numerous explanatory variables including health practices, so cial support, and other religious practices (RH 1.47, 95% CI 1.07-2.03). Conclusions. older adults who participate in private religious activity bef ore the onset of ADL impairment appear to have a survival advantage over th ose who do not.