The Effects of Education Levels and Metabolic Syndrome on Depression Scores
Document Type
Poster
Start Date
28-4-2026 12:00 PM
End Date
28-4-2026 2:00 PM
Description
Introduction Metabolic syndrome (MetS) requires three of five possible signs (or risk factors) of abdominal obesity, high triglycerides, low HDL cholesterol, high blood pressure, and high fasting blood sugar. While there is previous research on the relationship between metabolic syndrome (MetS) and depression, education level (E.L.) may also play an interactive role.
Purpose The purpose was to investigate the possible roles of education levels and MetS on depression.
Method Using data from the 2021-23 cycle of the NHANES from the CDC, respondents were divided into 3 groups based on E.L. Data sets downloaded using SAS Universal Viewer, then transferred to Excel for merging, sorting, and statistical analysis. A one-way ANOVA was used to investigate group differences, along with post hoc analyses utilizing Tukey's honestly significant difference (HSD) tests to identify the specific group differences.
Results Regarding E.L. and depression, group differences were found to be signif icant (F(2, 973)=8.857,p < 0.001). Regarding MetS and depression, group differences were found to be not significant (F(1, 973)=1.026,p=0.311). Regarding the interaction effect, group differences were found to be not significant (F(2, 973)=1 .176,p=0.309). The post hoc comparisons using the Tukey HSD indicated that the mean score of "< 9th Grade" was significantly different than "High School Graduate/GED" and "College Graduate or Above" while "High School Graduate/GED" and "College Graduate or Above" were not significantly different.
Discussion There was a downward trend in depression scores as E.L. increased from high school to college. The mean difference was greatest between the lowest and highest E.L. MetS was not a predictive facto r of depression, suggesting E.L. is more of an indicator of depression severity than health markers.
Recommended Citation
Nguyen, Cherie; Viator, Mary Grace; Hooper, Alise; and Hebert, George, "The Effects of Education Levels and Metabolic Syndrome on Depression Scores" (2026). School of Allied Health Professions Research Day. 14.
https://digitalscholar.lsuhsc.edu/ahrd/2026/posters/14
The Effects of Education Levels and Metabolic Syndrome on Depression Scores
Introduction Metabolic syndrome (MetS) requires three of five possible signs (or risk factors) of abdominal obesity, high triglycerides, low HDL cholesterol, high blood pressure, and high fasting blood sugar. While there is previous research on the relationship between metabolic syndrome (MetS) and depression, education level (E.L.) may also play an interactive role.
Purpose The purpose was to investigate the possible roles of education levels and MetS on depression.
Method Using data from the 2021-23 cycle of the NHANES from the CDC, respondents were divided into 3 groups based on E.L. Data sets downloaded using SAS Universal Viewer, then transferred to Excel for merging, sorting, and statistical analysis. A one-way ANOVA was used to investigate group differences, along with post hoc analyses utilizing Tukey's honestly significant difference (HSD) tests to identify the specific group differences.
Results Regarding E.L. and depression, group differences were found to be signif icant (F(2, 973)=8.857,p < 0.001). Regarding MetS and depression, group differences were found to be not significant (F(1, 973)=1.026,p=0.311). Regarding the interaction effect, group differences were found to be not significant (F(2, 973)=1 .176,p=0.309). The post hoc comparisons using the Tukey HSD indicated that the mean score of "< 9th Grade" was significantly different than "High School Graduate/GED" and "College Graduate or Above" while "High School Graduate/GED" and "College Graduate or Above" were not significantly different.
Discussion There was a downward trend in depression scores as E.L. increased from high school to college. The mean difference was greatest between the lowest and highest E.L. MetS was not a predictive facto r of depression, suggesting E.L. is more of an indicator of depression severity than health markers.