Abstract

Farmers are stewards of the land, but not necessarily stewards of their own health. According to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, agriculture is a stressful and dangerous occupation, yet farmers often choose to farm in order to carry on family traditions. Because farmers bond with the land, they associate health only with their physical abilities to meet their farming responsibilities. Though farmers often do not consider their mental health, the farming profession is stressful and has high occurrence of depression and suicide.

This study examines the ways farming affects mental health and the quality of life of farmers. Health surveys, observations, and semi-structured interviews were conducted with farmers from Delaware and Maryland, including the Eastern Shore where agriculture is a dominant activity. Over thirty audiotaped interviews, either individual or nested, generally two hours in length, were conducted. Farmers ranging from 32 to 82 years of age were either recruited by the snowball method or were participants in AgrAbility, a USDA program that supports physically disabled farmers. In addition to the interviews, 25 farmers completed a Health Related Quality of Life survey, the Short-Form 36, version 2 (SF-36v.2), which is used globally.

Study findings revealed a dominant theme among farmers' lives: survival. This overarching theme was characterized by three experiential categories identified as idling in stress, (health) malfunctions, and landscape challenges. Study findings revealed that farmers view themselves as being constantly stressed, which one farmer phrased "idling in stress." This ceaseless stress impacts farmers' physical and emotional health but is rarely recognized by health officials and agencies. For farmers, the need for health treatment is secondary to working the farm. Most farmers have some sort of physical illnesses—malfunctions—which are ignored. The pressures to succeed in farming can increase even while the farmers' profit margins decline. With mounting financial pressures, stress in farming escalates and a negative trajectory is evident.

Farmers' stress has increased as they realize their traditional way of life is vanishing and their landscape challenges are mounting. Due to urban sprawl and global markets, agriculture has become increasingly devalued. The result is that farmers leave farming either directly or indirectly, by unintentional or intentional injuries. This outcome has the potential to make us more dependent on international sources for our food. Recent history shows the perils of dependency on other powers for essential resources. National policymakers must consider the importance of retaining an independent role for food production; we need to fully recognize the importance of our farmers by providing the assistance they need. Public health organizations and farming organizations, such as AgrAbility, can play a key role in identifying and providing critical services to farmers through both diagnostic and health awareness programs. These partnerships are essential, as this study shows that farmers need more support to meet their economic and healthcare needs, both crucial for the sustainability of farming.