The association between fitness and obesity in diverse multi-ethnic college students

Abstract

Objective

We examined differences and associations between physical fitness and behavioral factors with obesity in a multi-ethnic student population. Participants: Study population included non-Hispanic whites (NHW, n = 1,454); Hispanics (n = 1,436) and Asians (n = 1,016) at a metropolitan university from Fall 2006 to Fall 2013. Methods: Analyses of Variance and regression analyses, utilizing cross-sectional data, measured the association between fitness, and behavior with obesity. Results: BMI differences (p < .05) were observed between NHW (23.17 ± 3.67), Hispanics (24.32 ± 3.67), and Asians (22.92 ± 4.12). Fitness parameters, relative VO₂ max, % body fat, and total fitness score were significantly (p < .0001) associated with obesity. Stress was strongly significantly associated with obesity in Hispanics (p < .001) and somewhat in NHW. Conclusions: Obesity disparities persist in college. Physical fitness and stress management interventions should be targeted towards Hispanic and NHW college students, which may curb current and/or adult-onset obesity.

Keywords:

• Fitness
• multi-racial/ethnic
• obesity
• obesity disparities
• stress

Acknowledgment

We would like to thank Elizabeth Marquez, MPHc for her technical support.

Conflict of interest

The authors have no conflicts of interest to report. The authors confirm that the research presented in this article met the ethical guidelines, including adherence to the legal requirements of the United States and received approval from the Institutional Review Board of California State University, Fullerton.

Data availability

The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author, AJM, upon reasonable request.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported in part by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), NIMHHD-R25 under Grant # 1R25MD010397-01.