Emotions and obesity among Mexican-American children.
The purpose of this study was to determine what relationships, if any, existed between high levels of body fat and emotional motivations for eating among Mexican-American children. Subjects (N = 177) were drawn from children aged 10-14 years who participated in the National Youth Sports Program in the Lower Rio Grande Valley region of Texas. Data were gathered through a self-report instrument dealing with emotional motivators involved in eating and through individual anthropometric measurements. Data analysis revealed that for the boys, a significant relationship existed between high percent body fat and the emotional motivation of stimulation. Handling and craving motivators were significantly related to high body fat for girls.
D000293:Adolescent; D000367:Age Factors; D002648:Child; D004644:Emotions; D005260:Female; D006630:Hispanic or Latino / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008800:Mexico / Q000208:ethnology; D009042:Motivation; D009765:Obesity / Q000523:psychology*; D012737:Sex Factors