Name: Zoë Gardner-Matviak
Live Poster Session: https://wesleyan.zoom.us/j/94487584675
Zoë Gardner-Matviak
Hi! I’m a Wesleyan University sophomore, majoring in psychology and minoring in art history. I’m from Boston and London.
Abstract: This study examines the relationships between anxiety, body mass index (BMI), healthcare access, and the age of first menstrual period among 3,312 young women from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (ADD HEALTH Wave One). Much previous research has been done about the relationships between age of pubertal maturation in women and anxiety as well as BMI. However, there was little research on any of these variables in relation to healthcare access, and no research on interactions between them. Results indicate that the average age of the participants’ first period was 12 years, with a mean anxiety score of 1.36 (indicating less than one instance of both fearfulness and inability to relax per week). While higher BMI was significantly associated with earlier onset of menstruation, no significant relationships were found between anxiety and either BMI or age of first period. Additionally, inconsistent healthcare access was linked to higher anxiety levels. However, neither anxiety nor healthcare access was found to moderate the relationship between BMI and age of first period. The findings challenge existing stereotypes regarding the mental health of girls with higher BMI, suggesting that increased anxiety does not cause the observed relationship between BMI and earlier pubertal maturation. Additionally, the established links between age of pubertal maturation and anxiety were not replicated in this study, possibly indicating a need for further research on this topic specifically within pubescent and post-pubescent adolescent girls. Also, it identifies adolescent girls with limited healthcare access as a population that potentially needs additional mental health support within school systems.
QAC-201-Poster-2