The investigation the relationship between life satisfaction, optimism, happiness and blood lipid and vitamin D levels on older people

Aim: Today, with the increase in the quality of life, the life span is prolonged and the proportion of the elderly population in the total population is increasing. Cardiovascular diseases are responsible for 46.2% (17.5 million) of deaths caused by non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in the world. Cardiovascular diseases are also the most important cause of mortality and morbidity in the elderly population. For this reason, prevention of cardiovascular diseases plays a key role in creating a healthy elderly population. This study was carried out to investigate the effect of life satisfaction, optimism and happiness on blood lipid and vitamin-D levels in people aged 55 and over. Material and Method: This cross-sectional study was conducted between January and August 2016. It included people aged 55 and over who were admitted with a variety of reasons to two different department (one internal and one surgical) at Turgut Özal Medical Center in Malatya. The sample size was calculated as 282 individuals to have 90% power and 95% confidence interval in the power analysis (r=0.2). Written consent was obtained from the ethics committee to perform the study. The questionnaire consisted of three parts. The first part contained information on socio-demographic factors. The second part contained the Satisfaction With Life Scale, the Life Orientation Test, and the Subjective Happiness Scale. The third part contained the Food Frequency Questionnaire. In addition, total cholesterol, HDL, LDL, TG, and vitamin-D levels of the individuals were measured. Results: When analyzing the correlations between the Subjective Happiness Scale score and blood lipid levels in the individuals participating in the study, the correlations between the Subjective Happiness Scale score and total cholesterol, HDL, and TG levels were found to be -0.102, 0.018, and -0.035, respectively (p>0.05). However, the correlation between the Subjective Happiness Scale score and LDL level was found to be -0.137 (p<0.05). While 78.1% of them had insufficient vitamin D levels (mild, moderate, severe), 21.9% of them had normal vitamin D levels. The correlations between vitamin D level and the Satisfaction With Life Scale, the Life Orientation Test, and the Subjective Happiness Scale scores were found to be 0.212 (p<0.05), 0.023 (p>0.05), and 0.130 (p<0.05), respectively. In the logistic regression analysis performed, female gender and BMI of 30 kg/m2 or greater were found to be significant in terms of lipid parameters. Conclusion: While LDL level was significantly and reverse associated with subjective happiness level, no significant relationship was found between other lipid parameters and subjective happiness level. There was a significant and linear relationship between vitamin-D level and life satisfaction and subjective happiness levels. It was found that nutrition and obesity were important for prevention of high blood lipid levels.