Frequent Physical Distress - Women

Frequent Physical Distress - Women in United States

United States

Frequent physical distress is a measure that aims to capture people who are experiencing persistent and likely severe physical health problems, which can greatly impact their overall well-being. Having 14 or more days of poor physical health a month has been validated as an indicator of substantial physical impairment. 

Frequent physical distress is associated with behavioral and metabolic factors such as smoking, physical inactivity and obesity; limited health care access and lower use of preventive care services; and chronic health conditions such as diabetes, hypertension and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

According to America’s Health Rankings data, the prevalence of frequent physical distress is higher among:

• Women ages 35-44 compared with women ages 18-34.
• Women who identify their race as multiracial, American Indian/Alaska Native or other compared with Asian women. 
• Women with lower educational attainment compared with college graduates.
• Women with an annual household income less than $25,000 compared with those with higher income levels. 
• Women living in non-metropolitan areas compared with women in metropolitan areas.

Focusing on evidence-based interventions that curb smoking, increase physical activity and promote healthy eating may help prevent the development of chronic conditions associated with frequent physical distress.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 2011. “Strategies to Prevent Obesity and Other Chronic Diseases: The CDC Guide to Strategies to Increase the Consumption of Fruits and Vegetables.” Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/21639.

Dwyer-Lindgren, Laura, Johan P. Mackenbach, Frank J. van Lenthe, and Ali H. Mokdad. 2017. “Self-Reported General Health, Physical Distress, Mental Distress, and Activity Limitation by US County, 1995-2012.” Population Health Metrics 15 (1): 16. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12963-017-0133-5.

Pickens, Cassandra M., Carol Pierannunzi, William Garvin, and Machell Town. 2018. “Surveillance for Certain Health Behaviors and Conditions Among States and Selected Local Areas — Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, United States, 2015.” MMWR. Surveillance Summaries 67 (9): 1–90. https://doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.ss6709a1.

Shih, Margaret, and Paul A. Simon. 2008. “Health-Related Quality of Life among Adults with Serious Psychological Distress and Chronic Medical Conditions.” Quality of Life Research 17 (4): 521–28. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11136-008-9330-9.

Stellefson, Michael, Samantha R. Paige, Adam E. Barry, Min Qi Wang, and Avery Apperson. 2019. “Risk Factors Associated with Physical and Mental Distress in People Who Report a COPD Diagnosis: Latent Class Analysis of 2016 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System Data.” International Journal of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease 14 (April): 809–22. https://doi.org/10.2147/COPD.S194018.