title: Socioeconomic status and body mass index in Canada: exploring measures and mechanisms.
abstract: We examine the relationship between socioeconomic status (SES), sociodemographic characteristics, lifestyle behaviors (fruit and vegetable intake, exercise, smoking, and alcohol consumption), and body mass index (BMI) using the Canadian Community Health Survey 2.1. We explore two different measures of SES, education and income, to elucidate material and cultural explanations of the SES-BMI relationship. Results vary significantly by gender, highlighting the complexity of the relationship between SES, sociodemographic and lifestyle factors, and BMI. We suggest that body weight is still a gendered status symbol, and that cultural and psychosocial factors may be more important than material factors in perpetuating this health inequality.
authors.affiliation: Jenny Godley, Department of Sociology, University of Calgary, 2500 University Dr. NW, Calgary, AB, Canada T2N 1N4. jgodley@ucalgary.ca
authors.forename: Jenny
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Godley
authors.forename: Lindsay
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: McLaren
mesh_terms: D015992:Body Mass Index; D002170:Canada; D015438:Health Behavior; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D008019:Life Style; D012737:Sex Factors; D012923:Social Class