abstract: 'Background Compared with wage and salary work, self-employment has been

  linked to more favorable cardiovascular health outcomes within the

  general population. Women comprise a significant proportion of the

  self-employed workforce and are disproportionately affected by

  cardiovascular disease. Self-employed women represent a unique

  population in that their cardiovascular health outcomes may be related

  to gender-specific advantages of non-traditional employment. To date, no

  studies have comprehensively explored the association between

  self-employment and risk factors for cardiovascular disease among women.

  Methods We conducted a weighted cross-sectional analysis using data from

  the University of Michigan Health and Retirement Study (HRS). Our study

  sample consisted of 4624 working women (employed for wages and

  self-employed) enrolled in the 2016 HRS cohort. Multivariable linear and

  logistic regression were used to examine the relationship between

  self-employment and several self-reported physical and mental health

  risk factors for cardiovascular disease, controlling for healthcare

  access. Results Among working women, self-employment was associated with

  a 34\% decrease in the odds of reporting obesity, a 43\% decrease in the

  odds of reporting hypertension, a 30\% decrease in the odds of reporting

  diabetes, and a 68\% increase in the odds of reporting participation in

  at least twice-weekly physical activity (p < 0.05). BMI for

  self-employed women was on average 1.79 units lower than it was for

  women working for wages (p < 0.01). Conclusions Employment structure may

  have important implications for cardiovascular health among women, and

  future studies should explore the causal relationship between

  self-employment and cardiovascular health outcomes in this population.

  Trial Registration: Not applicable.'
affiliation: 'Narain, KDC (Corresponding Author), Univ Calif Los Angeles, Dept Med,
  Div Gen Internal Med \& Hlth Serv Res GIM HSR, 1100 Glendon Ave,Suite 850, Los Angeles,
  CA 90024 USA.

  Dzodzomenyo, Sedina, Univ Calif Los Angeles, David Geffen Sch Med, 10833 Le Conte
  Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90095 USA.

  Narain, Kimberly Danae Cauley, Univ Calif Los Angeles, Dept Med, Div Gen Internal
  Med \& Hlth Serv Res GIM HSR, 1100 Glendon Ave,Suite 850, Los Angeles, CA 90024
  USA.

  Narain, Kimberly Danae Cauley, Univ Calif Los Angeles, Fielding Sch Publ Hlth, Ctr
  Hlth Adv, Box 951772,650 Charles Young Dr,S 31-269 CHS, Los Angeles, CA 90095 USA.'
article-number: '307'
author: Dzodzomenyo, Sedina and Narain, Kimberly Danae Cauley
author-email: KNarain@mednet.ucla.edu
author_list:
- family: Dzodzomenyo
  given: Sedina
- family: Narain
  given: Kimberly Danae Cauley
da: '2023-09-28'
doi: 10.1186/s12905-022-01893-w
eissn: 1472-6874
files: []
journal: BMC WOMENS HEALTH
keywords: Cardiovascular disease; Women's health; Employment status
keywords-plus: DISCRIMINATION; DISEASE
language: English
month: JUL 23
number: '1'
number-of-cited-references: '32'
papis_id: 3ecab24b66a9eeff4fd5722a6f4597de
ref: Dzodzomenyo2022exploringrelationshi
times-cited: '1'
title: Exploring the relationship between self-employment and women's cardiovascular
  health
type: Article
unique-id: WOS:000829156400002
usage-count-last-180-days: '2'
usage-count-since-2013: '13'
volume: '22'
web-of-science-categories: Public, Environmental \& Occupational Health; Obstetrics
  \& Gynecology
year: '2022'