Eating Behaviors and Obesity in African American and Caucasian Women
Abstract
Objective: Few studies have examined racial/ethnic differences in eating behaviors in relation to obesity. We therefore studied overweight African American and Caucasian women with emotional eating to detect factors associated with obesity using multiple linear regression (MLR) and signal detection analysis (SDA). Setting: Participants were recruited from the greater Washington, D.C. area. Participants: Ninety-eight female adults (46% African American, 54% Caucasian) with self-reported emotional eating completed measures of eating-related cognitions and behaviors. Main Outcome Measures: Body mass index (BMI; kg/m2) and body fat percentage. Results: African Americans had higher BMI and more body fat than Caucasian women but significantly lower levels of disinhibition of control over eating. Dietary restraint was not different between groups. MLR revealed being African American and reporting high disinhibition were associated with increases in both outcome variables, while high dietary restraint was associated with reduced BMI and body fat percentage. Signal detection results revealed that all African American women but only Caucasian women over the age of 29.3 were at significantly increased obesity risk. Conclusions: Our findings highlight the utility of SDA in obesity risk factor detection and suggest a universal need for obesity prevention among Caucasian and African American women. Findings stress the importance of early-onset weight loss and weight management interventions for African American females.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Aug 16, 2010
- Accession Number
- AD1013418
Entities
People
- Elena A. Spieker
Organizations
- Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences