Smoking, physical inactivity, and obesity: associations with social status

The author analyzed social-status-specific differences in tobacco smoking, physical inactivity, and obesity among men and women aged 18 years and above in Germany.

The 2003 Telephone Health Survey carried out by the Robert Koch Institute from September 2002 to May 2003 (n = 8318) provided the data for this study. The subjects' current smoking status, physical inactivity, and obesity were assessed. Their social status was judged on the basis of the information they gave about their education and professional training, occupational position, and net household income.

Men of low social status were found to be more likely to smoke (OR = 1.89, 95% CI = 1.53-2.34), to be physically inactive (OR = 2.30, 95% CI = 1.87-2.84), and to be obese (OR = 1.34, 95% CI = 1.02-1.77) than men of high social status. For women, social status had just as large an effect on smoking and physical inactivity as it did in men (OR = 1.63, 95% CI = 1.30-2.09; and OR = 1.91, 95% CI = 1.58-2.33, respectively), while its effect on obesity was even greater than in men (OR = 3.20, 95% CI = 2.46-4.18).

These results imply that persons of low social status should be an important target group for preventive and health-promoting measures, both in health policy and in medical practice.