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I dispute the characterization of psychological aspects of well-being as fragmented and a landscape of confusion in need of an organizing conceptual framework. After 30+ years of research in this area, I see progress toward a multi-faceted, ever more differentiated understanding of what well-being is. This richness reflects decades of painstaking empirical inquiry. I also challenge the view that emotion is the overarching theme of well-being research. Missing from the target article was much-needed emphasis on empirical assessment tools. A growing problem in contemporary research is the proliferation of thin, poorly validated measures, which should concern all of the newly funded Emotion Networks. I conclude with a call for greater emphasis on major historical challenges that are undermining the well-being and health of many.

BACKGROUND An unhealthy diet ranks among the top contributors to the burden of noncommunicable chronic disease and death in the US, highlighting the importance of evaluating diet quality in population-based studies, such as the MIDUS (Midlife in the United States) cohort. OBJECTIVE 1) To develop a simple tool (MIDUS healthy eating index (MIDUS-HEI)) to evaluate diet quality more broadly and consistently in subjects enrolled at different time points of the MIDUS study, and 2) To use this score in assessing the cross-sectional association of the overall dietary pattern with sociodemographic and health variables in MIDUS participants. METHODS We used extant food intake data collected from participants in two biomarker sub-studies of the MIDUS Core and Refresher national samples to design, test, and validate the dietary score tool through its cross-sectional association with available sociodemographic and health variables. RESULTS Our results indicated that better dietary quality was observed among older adults as well as white subjects and those with a higher educational status. According to the MIDUS-HEI score, dietary quality improved over time in MIDUS Refresher cohort compared to the MIDUS Core cohort. However, race-based disparities in dietary quality increased between the two survey times. Regarding health variables, MIDUS-HEI score was inversely associated with the prevalence of metabolic syndrome (MetS) and most of its diagnostic criteria. CONCLUSIONS The MIDUS-HEI score is a useful indicator of quality of diet intake, exhibiting an inverse cross-sectional association with unhealthy diet-related biomarkers and MetS. Also, sociodemographic-dependent variations of this index were consistent with similar dietary pattern scores evident in other epidemiological studies. Thus, MIDUS-HEI represents a valuable tool for further analysis and discovery using the wide multidisciplinary scope of MIDUS.

RationaleCardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of mortality for women in the USA. Current clinical biomarkers are inadequate to determine CVD risk in women, especially Black women, who disproportionately suffer from CVD.MethodsClinical data and LC-MS lipidomics from two independent study cohorts were used to identify novel circulating markers of CVD risk in White and Black women. Machine learning assessed predictive efficacy of identified lipids, and targeted oxylipid analysis provided insight into dysregulated inflammatory pathways.ResultsSelect phospholipids and triglycerides containing acyl chains in the arachidonic acid (ARA) pathway were predictive of systolic blood pressure (BP) after adjusting for biological factors including age, obesity, and glycemic status in White and Black women. Oxylipid levels indicated increased conversion of ARA through the COX and LOX enzymes to pro-inflammatory cytokines in Black women.ConclusionARA-containing phospholipid are independent predictors of CVD risk in White and Black women. Predisposition to CVD risk in Black women may further be explained by increased production of pro-inflammatory oxylipids relative to White women, regardless of blood pressure status. Future studies investigating the clinical utility of phospholipid ARA abundance as a marker of CVD risk in White and Black women are warranted.

Hearing and vision impairment are highly prevalent chronic conditions and are associated with poorer mental health and well-being. Mental health problems may be exacerbated by COVID-19-related lockdown measures and limitations of in-person contacts may affect those with sensory impairments more severely. We aimed to determine whether hearing and/or visual impairment were associated with worse mental health and psychological well-being during lockdown measures in Spring/Summer 2020 in Wisconsin. We included 1341 (64% women, aged 20-92 years) Survey of the Health of Wisconsin participants of a COVID-19 survey (May-June, 2020). We assessed self-reported current mental health and psychological well-being and vision and hearing impairment. Logistic regression models with vision and hearing impairments as determinants and multiple mental health and well-being outcomes were used and adjusted for age, gender, race, education, heart disease, hypertension, hyperlipidemia and diabetes. In preliminary analyses, we found associations of vision impairment with increased odds of generalized anxiety disorder (odds ratio=2.10; 95% confidence interval=1.32-3.29) and depression (2.57; 1.58-4.11). Individuals with a vision impairment were more likely to be taking medication for depression (1.75; 1.13-2.68), report being lonely (1.65; 1.00-2.64) and report hopelessness (1.45; 1.01-2.08). Individuals with a hearing impairment were more likely to be taking depression medications (1.72; 1.07-2.73) and to report being lonely (1.80; 1.05-2.98). Sensory impairment was not associated with stress levels or sense of purpose in life. Individuals with sensory impairment may represent a particularly vulnerable population during the COVID-19 pandemic. Future research should determine underlying reasons and interventions to mitigate this populations’ disadvantages.

We are carrying out a survey of more than 9000 American men and women who were seniors in Wisconsin high schools in 1957 and provided information then about their school performance educational and occupational plans and family background. They have subsequently been followed up in 1957 1964 and 1975; they will be about 53 years old when they are interviewed in late 1992 or early 1993. Each interview about one hour in length will be followed by a shorter mail questionnaire. We shall also interview a randomly selected sibling of each respondent using a slightly shorter version of the telephone interview. We also hope to obtain a waiver that will permit us to link our survey records to information from the Social Security system but this part of the design is currently under negotiation with the Social Security Administration. Finally we expect to obtain enough information to link our records to the National Death Index. Data from the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study (WLS) will be a valuable public resource for studies of aging and the life course inter-generational transfers and relationships family functioning social stratification physical and mental well-being and mortality. The study has 5 specific goals: (1) To extend models of occupation and earnings and to elaborate the roles of aspirations in adolescence and at mid-life of previous achievements and of familial responsibilities in current economic and social standing subjective well-being mental and physical health disability and wealth; (2) To identify and measure local effects on opportunity that is specific characteristics of a person firm or economic sector that directly influence the chances of obtaining a job or a limited range of jobs; (3) To extend and elaborate models of sibling resemblance that will elucidate influences of the family of origin on the life course; (4) To investigate self-assessments of well-being in the context of aspirations accomplishments and social relationships with significant others; (5) To measure social and economic exchange relationships with parents children and siblings and assess the consequences of those relationships for well being. (authors)