Correlates of body mass index in 1926 Dutch men and women

The relationship between body mass index (BMI) and demographic, socio-economic, and life-style characteristics was investigated among Dutch subjects, who participated in a nation-wide survey about knowledge, attitude and behaviour with respect to cardiovascular risk factors. A random sample of 882 men and 1044 women, aged 18 to 64 yr, was personally interviewed according to a structured questionnaire. BMI was calculated from self-reported height and body weight. To identify correlates of BMI, data were analysed by multiple regression for men and women separately. Among men a positive association of BMI was found with age, daily amount of tobacco consumption and family history of coronary heart disease (CHD). An inverse relationship was revealed for level of education, unemployment and smoking per se. Among women age, being married, widowed or divorced, and sedentary living were positively related to BMI. A negative contribution to BMI was provided by education level, familial social class and duration of leisure time physical activity.