Do Asthma and Physical Inactivity Influence the Associations of Personal and Job Stressors with Perceived Stress and Depression? Findings from the 1998–1999 California Work and Health Survey

PURPOSE: The purpose of the study is to estimate the associations of personal and job stressors with perceived stress and depression, and to determine if these associations are modified by asthma and physical inactivity. METHODS: Data from 2,902 adult respondents of the 1998–1999 California Work and Health Survey (CWHS) were used. The CWHS included items on asthma, exercise, personal stressors, psychological and physical job demands, and perceived stress and depression. Multivariable logistic regression modeling was used to estimate cross-sectional and longitudinal associations. RESULTS: The estimated joint effects of high stressor scores and asthma on stress are compatible with greater than multiplicative effects in both cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses. Asthma did not appear to modify stressor-depression associations, and physical inactivity modified neither stressor-stress nor stressor-depression associations. Among the employed, the cross-sectional joint effects of personal stressors and physical inactivity on stress and depression are compatible with greater than multiplicative effects, as are the effects of low decision latitude and asthma on perceived stress. CONCLUSIONS: Asthma and physical inactivity may augment the effects of stressors, suggesting that the increasing prevalence of asthma may contribute to greater stress perception and depression, and that exercise may ameliorate these conditions by dampening stressor effects.