title: Tract- and county-level income inequality and individual risk of obesity in the United States.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  We tested three alternative hypotheses regarding the relationship between income inequality and individual risk of obesity at two geographical scales: U.S. Census tract and county.
  
  
  METHODS
  Income inequality was measured by Gini coefficients, created from the 2000 U.S. Census. Obesity was clinically measured in the 2003-2008 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). The individual measures and area measures were geo-linked to estimate three sets of multi-level models: tract only, county only, and tract and county simultaneously. Gender was tested as a moderator.
  
  
  RESULTS
  At both the tract and county levels, higher income inequality was associated with lower individual risk of obesity. The size of the coefficient was larger for county-level Gini than for tract-level Gini; and controlling income inequality at one level did not reduce the impact of income inequality at the other level. Gender was not a significant moderator for the obesity-income inequality association.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Higher tract and county income inequality was associated with lower individual risk of obesity, indicating that at least at the tract and county levels and in the context of cross-sectional data, the public health goal of reducing the rate of obesity is in line with anti-poverty policies of addressing poverty through mixed-income development where neighborhood income inequality is likely higher than homogeneous neighborhoods.
authors.affiliation: Department of Family and Consumer Studies, University of Utah, 225 S 1400 E, AEB 228, Salt Lake City, UT 84112-0080, USA. Electronic address: fan@fcs.utah.edu.
authors.forename: Jessie X
authors.initials: JX
authors.lastname: Fan
authors.affiliation: Department of Sociology, University of Utah, 380 S 1530 E, Rm 301, Salt Lake City, UT 84112-0250, USA. Electronic address: ming.wen@soc.utah.edu.
authors.forename: Ming
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wen
authors.affiliation: Department of Family and Consumer Studies, University of Utah, 225 S 1400 E, AEB 228, Salt Lake City, UT 84112-0080, USA. Electronic address: lk2700@fcs.utah.edu.
authors.forename: Lori
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Kowaleski-Jones
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D019352:Censuses; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D054624:Health Status Disparities; D006801:Humans; D007182:Income; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009749:Nutrition Surveys; D009765:Obesity / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D011203:Poverty; D012111:Residence Characteristics; D012307:Risk Factors; D012923:Social Class; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Census tract; County; Income inequality; NHANES; Neighborhood; Obesity