Dramatic Increases in Obesity and Overweight Prevalence and Body Mass Index Among Ethnic-Immigrant and Social Class Groups in the United States, 1976–2008

Abstract

This study examined trends in US obesity and overweight prevalence and body mass index (BMI) among 30 immigrant groups, stratified by race/ethnicity and length of immigration, and among detailed education, occupation, and income/poverty groups from 1976 to 2008. Using 1976–2008 National Health Interview Surveys, differentials in obesity, overweight, and BMI, based on self-reported height and weight, were analyzed by using disparity indices, logistic, and linear regression. The obesity prevalence for the US population aged ≥18 tripled from 8.7% in 1976 to 27.4% in 2008. Overweight prevalence increased from 36.9% in 1976 to 62.0% in 2008. During 1991–2008, obesity prevalence for US-born adults increased from 13.9 to 28.7%, while prevalence for immigrants increased from 9.5 to 20.7%. While immigrants in each ethnic group and time period had lower obesity and overweight prevalence and BMI than the US-born, immigrants’ risk of obesity and overweight increased with increasing duration of residence. In 2003–2008, obesity prevalence ranged from 2.3% for recent Chinese immigrants to 31–39% for American Indians, US-born blacks, Mexicans, and Puerto Ricans, and long-term Mexican and Puerto Rican immigrants. Between 1976 and 2008, the obesity prevalence more than quadrupled for those with a college education or sales occupation. Although higher prevalence was observed for lower education, income, and occupation levels in each period, socioeconomic gradients in obesity and overweight decreased over time because of more rapid increases in prevalence among higher socioeconomic groups. Continued immigrant and socioeconomic disparities in prevalence will likely have substantial impacts on future obesity trends in the US.

The impact of migration on body weight: a review

“…Sample sizes varied between 53 12 and 478,276 individuals 13 . Table 1 shows that a number of papers included in this review did not include relevant details about methodology, particularly sampling and recruitment techniques and participation rates, thus compromising the quality of the evidence.…”

“…Length of residence in the host country as a determinant of increases in BMI Significant disparities were observed between immigrant sub-groups with regard to the association between length of time since immigration and BMI 13 . Results are therefore presented by immigrant group (Table 2) showing the results for specific countries of origin where available.…”

Is the Environment Near Home and School Associated with Physical Activity and Adiposity of Urban Preschool Children?

“…The social context, including local norms about body size, is also likely to influence activity and adiposity; indeed, local norms may be responsible for our finding that living in a neighborhood with more immigrants predicts lower adiposity. 42 As the literature on how environments affect physical activity and adiposity grows, interactions between environment characteristics have been noted. For example, Liu and colleagues reported an association between vegetation and youth body weight that was stronger in more densely populated areas.…”

“…Compositional characteristics (proportion of individuals below the federal poverty line, proportion reporting their race as black, and proportion foreign born) and population density (residents per square kilometer) were estimated using census data from the year 2000, Summary File 3. Proportion below poverty and reporting black race were expected to predict higher adiposity, while percent foreign born was expected to predict lower adiposity, based on national patterns of obesity prevalence 41,42 and the idea that local social norms are important determinants of body size. 43 Data from census block groups within or intersecting the neighborhood buffers were combined using a clipped and area-weighted mean.…”

Measuring Socioeconomic Inequality in Obesity: Looking Beyond the Obesity Threshold

“…Substantial differences between race and gender groups and reductions in socioeconomic disparities in obesity over time have also been found by Zhang and Wang (2004) with NHANES data for the same period but with education as a measure of SES, as well as by Singh et al . (2011) for immigrant populations using data from the 1976–2008 National Health Interview Surveys with income, education, and occupation as indicators of SES.…”