Asthma-Related Immune Responses in Youth With Asthma: Associations With Maternal Responsiveness and Expressions of Positive and Negative Affect in Daily Life

Objectives Stressful family environments early in life have negative effects on physical health. However, less is known about the health effects of positive aspects of families. We examined the associations between maternal responsiveness and immune markers among youth with asthma and identified youth expressions of positive affect as a potential mechanism of these associations. Methods Forty-three youths with asthma (26 boys; aged 10–17 years) wore the Electronically Activated Recorder for 4 days to assess maternal responsiveness and youth expressions of affect from audio-recordings of daily life. Trained coders rated Electronically Activated Recorder sound files for expressions of maternal responsiveness and affect displayed by the youth. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells were isolated, cultured, and assayed to determine stimulated levels of interleukin (IL)-5, IL-13, and interferon-&ggr;. Results Greater maternal responsiveness was associated with decreased stimulated production of IL-5 (r = −0.38, p = .012) and IL-13 (r = −0.33, p = .031). Greater total positive affect in youth was linked to decreased stimulated production of IL-5 (r = −0.46, p = .002) and IL-13 (r = −0.37, p = .014). Total negative affect among youth was unrelated to immune responses. There was a significant indirect effect of maternal responsiveness via positive affect in youth on lower levels of IL-5 (95% confidence interval = −3.41 to −0.03) and IL-13 (95% confidence interval = −2.34 to −0.01) when adjusting for caregiver-youth conflict and negative affect among youth. Conclusions These results indicate the importance of positive family interactions for youth and provide preliminary evidence for a mechanism through which parenting can influence immune responses in youth with asthma.

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