title: Physical factors, personal characteristics, and substance use: associations with obesity.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Because obesity has become a major public health problem, attention to a range of its predictors is needed. This study examined the association of physical factors, personal characteristics, and substance use with obesity in a sample (N = 815) of African American and Puerto Rican young adults with a mean age of 32.
  
  
  METHODS
  Body mass index (BMI) was calculated to assess obesity. Bivariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were conducted.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Bivariate analyses showed that protective factors such as physical activity (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = .82, 95% confidence interval [CI] = .74-.91), healthy diet (AOR = .96, 95% CI = .93-.99), self-control (AOR = .93, 95% CI = .87-.98), and life satisfaction (AOR = .97, 95% CI = .95-.99) were associated with a reduced probability of being obese. Marijuana use was also associated with a decreased probability of obesity (AOR = .89, 95% CI = .80-.99), but was not considered a protective factor. Risk factors such as short sleep duration (AOR = 1.70, 95% CI = 1.24-2.33) and depressive mood (AOR = 1.05, 95% CI = 1.01-1.09) were associated with an increased probability of being obese.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  For African Americans and Puerto Ricans, programs to treat obesity should focus on increasing sleep, physical activity, and life satisfaction.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY 10016, USA. judith.brook@nyumc.org
authors.forename: Judith S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Brook
authors.forename: Jung Yeon
authors.initials: JY
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Stephen J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Finch
authors.forename: Elinor B
authors.initials: EB
authors.lastname: Balka
authors.forename: David W
authors.initials: DW
authors.lastname: Brook
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American / Q000523:psychology; D015992:Body Mass Index; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior; D006630:Hispanic or Latino / Q000523:psychology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009043:Motor Activity; D009765:Obesity / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy; D010549:Personal Satisfaction; D012307:Risk Factors; D012890:Sleep; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000150:complications* / Q000523:psychology