RESUMEN
While smoking is a crucial health risk, it adversely affects oral health, particularly becoming riskier for older adults who have smoked for a long time. This study identifies the patterns of smoking behavior changes in older adults aged 65 years and older and examines how the smoking behavior changes affect their oral health. Longitudinal data were derived from Korean Longitudinal Study of Aging (KLoSA) between 2006 and 2018, targeting the older adults 65 years and older in South Korea. The independent variable was the amount of smoking, and the dependent variable was oral health. For data analysis, SPSS 25.0 and M-plus 8.0 programs were utilized. As a result, the patterns of changes in smoking behavior of the older adults finally derived were 'non-smoking,' 'decreasing,' 'high-level maintenance,' and 'decreasing after increasing.' Furthermore, the relationship between the smoking behavior change pattern of the older adults and oral health was revealed. Specifically, as for the smoking behavior change pattern of the older adults, it was confirmed that the oral health was better in the 'non-smoking' pattern compared to the 'high-level maintenance' pattern. On the other hand, it was confirmed that the 'decreasing' pattern and the 'decreasing after rising' pattern did not significantly affect oral health. The findings imply that even if older adults smoked a lot in the past, if they quit smoking at some point, it can positively affect their oral health. Furthermore, it is suggested to allow public officials, medical professionals, and welfare experts to actively intervene for older adults to stop smoking for their oral health.
RESUMEN
This study aimed to investigate the moderation of social support in the association between loneliness and depression in different age groups of older adults. The sample consisted of 1532 community-dwelling adults aged 65 years or older, based on the data from the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project (NSHAP), Wave 3 (2015-2016). Eleven items of the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) were used to measure depressive symptoms. Similarly, a four-item scale was used to measure social support (each from spouse and family), and a three-item scale for loneliness. The results were as follows. Loneliness was associated with depression in both the young-old and the old-old groups. Spousal support and family support were associated with reduced depression in the young-old group, whereas only spousal support was associated with relieving depression in the old-old group. Social support had a significant moderating effect on the relationship between loneliness and depression in the old-old group, whereas it had no significant effect in the young-old group. From these results, it can be concluded that spousal support plays a significant role in seniors' mental health. The role of caregivers for a person's well-being grows later in life, so practitioners could help couples communicate with this consideration. In addition, regular contacts with family members and spousal support are recommended to prevent older old adults' depression.
