The Great Recession worsened blood pressure and blood glucose levels in American adults

Significance Longitudinal data from the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA) document deleterious health impacts of the economic and social stresses associated with the Great Recession, with significant increases in blood pressure and glucose. Effects are independent of underlying age-related trends in these biomarkers. Larger effects are seen in population subgroups more severely hit by the recession: younger adults (i.e., those more likely still in the labor force) and older homeowners (whose declining home wealth likely reduced a key element of their financial security). Results also reveal greater impacts on blood pressure and glucose among those on medication, and a concomitant reduction in medication use and intensity of treatment—a potential pathway by which the Great Recession affected people on medications more.