Association of Social Participation with Cardiovascular Risk Factors: A Systematic Review

Although social participation, defined as involvement in social activities, may be beneficial for cardiovascular health, evidence about the association remains limited. This systematic review summarized the relationship between social participation and cardiovascular risk factors.

Original articles of longitudinal observational studies published in English before January 1, 2024, were searched via PubMed, Scopus, and Cochrane Library. Two investigators selected eligible literature for four health outcomes: hypertension, diabetes, dyslipidemia, and obesity.

Eight articles (including duplicates) covering cohort studies were included. The results indicated that social participation is associated with lower hypertension risk, but gender differences may exist in the association between social participation and hypertension. Two articles from a Japanese cohort study were found on diabetes, both of which reported significant preventive association with social participation. The only study on dyslipidemia showed a higher hyperlipidemia risk among women, but not men, with social participation. Two studies on the risk of obesity showed inconsistent results, with one reporting the association between social participation and maintenance of smaller waist circumference only among men, while the other found no association with body mass index.

There is some evidence of the association between social participation and better cardiovascular health outcomes. However, evidence on gender differences and validation of the methodology for measuring social participation was still lacking.