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The Relationship between Childhood Obesity, Low Socioeconomic Status, and Race/Ethnicity: Lessons from Massachusetts
Robert Rogers1, Taylor F Eagle1, Anne Sheetz2
11 Michigan Clinical Outcomes Research and Reporting Program, University of Michigan Health System , Ann Arbor, MI.
Insights
Childhood obesity rates in Massachusetts are high. Low socioeconomic status (SES), not race/ethnicity, independently predicts overweight/obesity in children when controlling for income.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Health
- Public Health
- Epidemiology
Background:
- Previous research indicated race/ethnicity as a predictor of childhood overweight/obesity.
- These studies often did not account for socioeconomic status (SES).
- This study investigates race/ethnicity's independent role in childhood obesity, considering SES variations.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine if race/ethnicity independently predicts childhood obesity after controlling for low socioeconomic status (SES).
- To analyze the relationship between race/ethnicity, low income, and overweight/obese status in Massachusetts students.
Main Methods:
- Utilized 2009 data from 68 Massachusetts school districts, encompassing 111,799 students (grades 1, 4, 7, 10).
- Examined the rates of overweight/obese students, African American/Hispanic students, and low-income students.
- Employed multiple regression modeling to assess the main effects and interaction of race/ethnicity and low income on obesity rates.
Main Results:
- Low income was strongly associated with overweight/obese status (p < 0.0001).
- The effect of race/ethnicity (p = 0.27) and its interaction with low income (p = 0.23) were not statistically significant.
- A 1% increase in low income correlated with a 1.17% increase in overweight/obese status.
Conclusions:
- Childhood overweight/obesity is prevalent in Massachusetts, with rates ranging from 10% to 46%.
- While higher rates were observed in African American and Hispanic students, this association vanished when controlling for family income.
- Low SES appears to be a more significant factor in childhood obesity than race/ethnicity.
Background:
Previous studies have shown race/ethnicity, particularly African American and/or Hispanic status, to be a predictor of overweight/obese status in children. However, these studies have failed to adjust for low socioeconomic status (SES). This study assessed whether race/ethnicity remained an independent predictor of childhood obesity when accounting for variations in SES (low-income) among communities in Massachusetts.
Methods:
This study was based on 2009 summarized data from 68 Massachusetts school districts with 111,799 students in grades 1, 4, 7, and 10. We studied the relationship between the rate of overweight/obese students (mean = 0.32; range = 0.10-0.46), the rate of African American and Hispanic students (mean = 0.17; range = 0.00-0.90), and the rate of low-income students (mean = 0.27; range = 0.02-0.87) in two and three dimensions. The main effect of the race/ethnicity rate, the low-income rate, and their interaction on the overweight and obese rate was investigated by multiple regression modeling.
Results:
Low-income was highly associated with overweight/obese status (p < 0.0001), whereas the effect of race/ethnicity (p = 0.27) and its interaction (p = 0.23) with low-income were not statistically significant. For every 1% increase in low-income, there was a 1.17% increase in overweight/obese status. This pattern was observed across all African American and Hispanic rates in the communities studied.
Conclusions:
Overweight/obese status was highly prevalent among Massachusetts students, varying from 10% to 46% across communities. Although there were higher rates of overweight/obese status among African American and Hispanic students, the relationship disappeared when controlling for family income. Our findings suggest low SES plays a more significant role in the nation's childhood obesity epidemic than race/ethnicity.
