The prevalence of obesity in ethnic admixture adults.
OBJECTIVE
To determine whether the prevalence of obesity in ethnic admixture adults varies systematically from the average of the prevalence estimates for the ethnic groups with whom they share a common ethnicity.


METHODS
The sample included 215,000 adults who reported one or more ethnicities, height, weight, and other characteristics through a mailed survey.


RESULTS
The highest age-adjusted prevalence of overweight (BMI>or=25) was in Hawaiian/Latino men (88%; n=41) and black/Latina women (74.5%; n=79), and highest obesity (BMI>or=30) rates were in Hawaiian/Latino men (53.7%; n=41) and Hawaiian women (39.2%, n=1,247). The prevalence estimates for most admixed groups were similar to or higher than the average of the prevalences for the ethnic groups with whom they shared common ethnicities. For instance, the prevalence of overweight/obesity in five ethnic admixtures-Asian/white, Hawaiian/white, Hawaiian/Asian, Latina/white, and Hawaiian/Asian/white ethnic admixtures-was significantly higher (P<0.0001) than the average of the prevalence estimates for their component ethnic groups.


CONCLUSIONS
The identification of individuals who have a high-risk ethnic admixture is important not only to the personal health and well-being of such individuals, but could also be important to future efforts in order to control the epidemic of obesity in the United States.
Albright
Cheryl L
CL
Prevention and Control Program, Cancer Research Center of Hawaii, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, Hawaii, USA. calbright@crch.hawaii.edu
Steffen
Alana D
AD
Wilkens
Lynne R
LR
Henderson
Brian E
BE
Kolonel
Laurence N
LN
D000368:Aged; D001213:Asian / Q000208:ethnology; D044383:Black People / Q000208:ethnology; D002140:California / Q000453:epidemiology; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D006254:Hawaii / Q000453:epidemiology; D006306:Health Surveys; D006630:Hispanic or Latino / Q000208:ethnology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009765:Obesity / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000208:ethnology*; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors; D044465:White People / Q000208:ethnology; D001741:Black or African American