title: Black-white disparities in overweight and obesity trends by educational attainment in the United States, 1997-2008.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Few studies have examined racial and educational disparities in recent population-based trends.
  
  
  METHODS
  We analyzed data of a nationally representative sample of 174,228 US-born adults in the National Health Interview Survey from 1997 to 2008. We determined mean BMI trends by educational attainment and race and black-white prevalence ratios (PRs) for overweight/obesity (BMI > 25 kg/m(2)) using adjusted Poisson regression with robust variance.
  
  
  RESULTS
  From 1997 to 2008, BMI increased by ≥1 kg/m(2) in all race-sex groups, and appeared to increase faster among whites. Blacks with greater than a high school education (GHSE) had a consistently higher BMI over time than whites in both women (28.3 ± 0.14 to 29.7 ± 0.18 kg/m(2) versus 25.8 ± 0.58 to 26.5 ± 0.08 kg/m(2)) and men (28.1 ± 0.17 kg/m(2) to 29.0 ± 0.20 versus 27.1 ± 0.04 kg/m(2) to 28.1 ± 0.06 kg/m(2)). For participants of all educational attainment levels, age-adjusted overweight/obesity was greater by 44% (95% CI: 1.42-1.46) in black versus white women and 2% (1.01-1.04) in men. Among those with GHSE, overweight/obesity prevalence was greater (PR: 1.52; 1.49-1.55) in black versus white women, but greater (1.07; 1.05-1.09) in men.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  BMI increased steadily in all race-sex and education groups from 1997 to 2008, and blacks (particularly women) had a consistently higher BMI than their white counterparts. Overweight/obesity trends and racial disparities were more prominent among individuals with higher education levels, compared to their counterparts with lower education levels.
authors.affiliation: Department of Nutrition, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA 02115, USA. cjackson@hsph.harvard.edu
authors.forename: Chandra L
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Jackson
authors.forename: Moyses
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Szklo
authors.forename: Hsin-Chieh
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Yeh
authors.forename: Nae-Yuh
authors.initials: NY
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Rosemary
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Dray-Spira
authors.forename: Roland
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Thorpe
authors.forename: Frederick L
authors.initials: FL
authors.lastname: Brancati
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American / Q000193:education*; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D015992:Body Mass Index; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004522:Educational Status; D005260:Female; D054624:Health Status Disparities; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D009765:Obesity / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000208:ethnology*; D050177:Overweight / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000208:ethnology*; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors; D012737:Sex Factors; D013997:Time Factors; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D044465:White People / Q000193:education*