LAUSR

BACKGROUND Poor social health is a risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD), however an in-depth exploration of the link through CVD risk factors is lacking. AIM To examine the relationship between social health (social isolation, social support, loneliness) and CVD risk factors among healthy older women and men. METHODS Data were from 11,498 healthy community-dwelling Australians aged ≥70 years from the ASPirin in Reducing Events in the Elderly (ASPREE) trial and the ASPREE Longitudinal Study of Older Persons sub-study. Ten-year CVD risk was estimated using the Atherosclerotic CVD Risk Scale (ASCVDRS) and the Framingham Risk Score (FRS). RESULTS Physical inactivity and experiencing depressive symptoms were the only CVD risk factors that consistently differed by all three constructs of poor social health. Across both genders, loneliness was associated with greater ASCVDRS (women: β=0.01, p<0.05; men: β=0.03, p<0.001), social isolation with greater FRS (women: β=0.02, p<0.01; men: β=0.03, p<0.01) and the social health composite of being lonely (regardless of social isolation and/or social support status) with greater ASCVDRS (women: β=0.01, p=0.02; men: β=0.03, p<0.001). Among men, loneliness was also associated with greater FRS (β=0.03, p<0.001) and social support with greater ASCVDRS (β=0.02, p=0.01). Men were more socially isolated, less socially supported and less lonely than women. CONCLUSION Social isolation, social support and loneliness displayed diverse relationships with CVD risk factors and risk scores, emphasising the importance of distinguishing between these three constructs. These findings inform on potential avenues to effectively target and manage poor social health and CVD risk among older adults. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.