Faith and Family Caregiving

Faith in God and belonging to a religion may reduce stress and anxiety in family caregivers, a new study suggests.

Researchers from Stanford University examined the impact of prayer, faith and religion on the well-being of individuals who serve as caregivers to a family member.

It has been suggested that patients who pray for themselves or are aware that others are praying for them may develop stronger coping skills and decreased anxiety, thereby potentially improving health outcomes. Other theories include beneficial effects of prayer or "positive thinking" on the immune system, central nervous system (brain) or hormonal system. The meditative, relaxing effects of prayer have been suggested to have beneficial effects such as lowering blood pressure. There are no plausible scientific explanations for the possible effects of intercessory prayers said without the knowledge of patients.

The study, conducted over a 14-month period, used participant observation and in-depth interviews to evaluate the health of African American adults providing in-home care for a family member with chronic confusion.

The majority of caregivers were adult daughters. Nearly half attributed chronic confusion to a difficult life and emotional stress or "worry;" a third believed it to be a natural component of "old age." The study reported that caregivers tended to view their work as an expression of love and devotion that was accompanied by emotional stress and personal sacrifice. While just under half of the caregivers had no other family members willing or available to assist with the physical care of the elder, the majority were able to turn to family members for emotional support.

The study found that caregivers identified strong religious beliefs as the primary force that sustained them in the caregiving role. The centrality of spirituality, and faith/religion was noted in nearly all aspects of life. Caregivers also reported that faith in God was an important aspect of the care recipients' lives as well.

Recipients' spiritual needs were addressed by accompanying the care recipient to church services and reading Bible passages to them on a regular basis. Selective community services were also used that supported efforts at maintaining the family caregiver role.

Studies of the effects of prayer on health outcomes report variable results, with some research finding benefits, and other trials noting no effects. More research on the effects of faith and religion on the health of both patients and their caregivers are needed.

For more information about prayer, please visit Natural Standard's Health & Wellness database.

Comments

[chowder]

This is an interesting topic that I was just discussing with a fellow researcher the other day. What is the best way to perform a clinical trial on the benefits of prayer? It would have to be double-blinded so the subjects wouldn't know if someone is praying for them, and those who are praying don't know if they're delivering a "real" prayer or a placebo or "sham" prayer. There's where the snag is – how does one deliver a sham prayer treatment?

[Josh]

I'm curious as to how you would determine whether the benefit came from prayer or from just BELIEVING in something. Or even just from the feelings the caregivers have for the patients that motivate them to take this action. How much of a potential benefit comes simply from things that make people feel good? Pet therapy, exercise, etc.

[JJ]

There are no plausible scientific explanations for the possible effects of intercessory prayers said/performed without the knowledge of patients. However, as mentioned in the article, there are proposed mechanisms of action for patients who know they are being prayed for. In addition, if the patient prays for him/herself, it may have meditative or relaxing effects that have been suggested to have health benefits, such as lowering blood pressure.

[TW]

I personally am not a "believer," but I think it's great that prayer and faith can work for some people. It seems to help people get through really tough times, especially chronic illnesses and the loss of a loved one. It makes sense to me that having a strong belief system would help people cope with the stress of care giving.

[God is Love]

I think that a lot of people wrongly assume that people who have faith or are religious are misled and any benefits they may receive are purely coincidental. I also take offense to those who suggest that religion is a means of oppressing the poor and/or unfortunate and forcing them to accept their circumstances in life. That is not the message of the Gospel nor is it the message of any major religion that I am familiar with. As a Catholic, I can say that faith makes ALL the difference in my life and I would in NO WAY be where I am today if it weren't for my faith - something I consider to be an absolute gift from God and not something I chose to believe in, but rather a conviction that God put in my heart. I've had to care for a sick mother and both of my parents have suffered from various illnesses, and I could have easily coped with the stress, difficulties, disappointments and grief by looking for comfort in a relationship, by functioning at a shallow level and hopping from party to party, drink to drink, or by turning goth and deciding that the world sucks and is dead to me. As crazy or extreme as those may sound, those choices are being made EVERY DAY in this country by young adults like myself who were not raised in any faith and without any sort of religion or belief system, who find themselves utterly helpless. We can attempt to shut off our emotions as much as we want, but eventually, we must acknowledge our loneliness and our desire to feel. I think that America in particular needs to stop being so narrow-minded about faith and learn to respect and appreciate it. This country was founded by people who ardently believed and trusted in God, and they did not see their belief in God to conflict with their equal belief in the right to freedom.

[Jae]

I'm also somewhat skeptical about the effect of prayer. It seems likely that any benefit would be from a placebo effect. To echo 'chowder,' this would be a very difficult thing to measure and ascertain. Another way to look at it could be "Who cares? As long as both parties believe and no one is getting hurt, what's the harm?" Thoughts?

[Marya]

Not necessarily religion or prayer, but having a sense of deep personal convictions and values can be immensely beneficial to people. This has also been linked to reduced incidence of depression, smoking and alcohol abuse.

[AJ]

Jae,

I agree. I don't think it really matters whether or not health benefits are caused by the placebo effect. If prayer helps, then it's great for the patient. I also think doctors need to be more accepting of patients' beliefs.

[Reilly]

This research does not really surprise me. When my great aunt was ill, the pastor used to make weekly visits to her home. I really think his visits helped improve the mood and well being of the entire family, not just my aunt.

[Ashley]

There are numerous studies of the effects of intercessory prayer on illness severity, death, and well-being of patients or loved ones. Results are variable, with some studies reporting benefits of prayer on severity or length of illness, and others suggesting no effects. Most research has not been well designed or reported, and as a result, a firm conclusion is not possible. Additional research is needed in this area with clear descriptions of prayer techniques and well-defined health outcomes.

Several studies in which patients knew that prayers were being said on their behalf report benefits, although it is not clear that prayer is superior to other forms of compassionate interaction.

[Rick]

I think that this is something that is very hard to study and very hard to find definitive results. Like said before, it would be hard to have a double-blind study. I agree that it doesn’t matter whether it’s the placebo effect or that praying really does improve illnesses, as long as it works for those patients. I also don’t believe that if it is proved that faith and praying helps health conditions it will make “non-believers” realize that they need faith and start praying immediately.

[Paul]

Recent large scale empirical studies using currently accepted scientific methodologies suggest that third-person prayer in particular may not be as effective as one would like to believe. See the Harvard Medical School release:

http://web.med.harvard.edu/sites/RELEASES/html/3_31STEP.html

With regards to personal prayer, It is proven that thought can affect health and vice versa (upward and downward causality) as in the so-called placebo effect. However, if even one percent of one percent of all the prayers of all the people who have been on their deathbeds were effective, there should be at least several thousand women/men on earth that are several thousand years old. Facts of life folks, whatever your philosophy or faith.