title: Religiousness, health, and depression in older adults from a brazilian military setting.
abstract: This study aims to analyze the association between religious attendance, self-reported religiousness, depression, and several health factors in 170 older adults from a Brazilian outpatient setting. A comprehensive assessment was conducted including sociodemographic characteristics, religious attendance, self-reported religiousness, functional status, depression, pain, hospitalization, and mental status. After adjusting for sociodemographics, (a) higher self-reported religiousness was associated with lower prevalence of smoking, less depressive symptoms, and less hospitalization and (b) higher religious attendance was only associated with less depressive symptoms. Religiousness seems to play a role in depression, smoking, and hospitalization in older adults from a Brazilian outpatient setting. Self-reported religiousness was associated with more health characteristics than religious attendance.
authors.affiliation: Research Department, São Paulo Medical Spiritist Association, 04520-000 São Paulo, SP, Brazil ; Department of Geriatrics, São Paulo Air Force Hospital, 02012-021 São Paulo, SP, Brazil ; Research Department, João Evangelista Hospital, 02340-000 São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Giancarlo
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Lucchetti
authors.forename: Alessandra L G
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Lucchetti
authors.forename: Mario F P
authors.initials: MF
authors.lastname: Peres
authors.forename: Alexander
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Moreira-Almeida
authors.forename: Harold G
authors.initials: HG
authors.lastname: Koenig