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Journal of American College Health Volume 69, 2021 - Issue 4
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Major Article

Sex and racial/ethnic differences in the prevalence of overweight and obesity among U.S. college students, 2011–2015

Jaesin Saa College of Education and Health Sciences, Touro University, Vallejo, CA, USA
, PhD,
Beom-Young Chob Department of Epidemiology, Center for Social Epidemiology and Population Health, School of Public Health, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
, PhD, MPH,
Jean-Philippe Chaputc Department of Pediatrics, University of Ottawa, Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
, PhD,
Joon Chungd Division of Sleep and Circadian Disorders, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA;e Division of Sleep Medicine, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
, PhD,
Siyoung Choef Department of Kinesiology and Health, Miami University, Oxford, OH, USA
, PhD,
Julie A. Gazmarariang Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
, PhD,
Jong Cheol Shinh Department of Kinesiology and Community Health, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Champaign, IL, USA
, MS, PhD,
Chung Gun Leei Department of Physical Education, College of Education, Seoul National University, Seoul, South KoreaCorrespondence[email protected]
, PhD,
Gabriel Navarrettea College of Education and Health Sciences, Touro University, Vallejo, CA, USA
, MS &
Tiffany Hana College of Education and Health Sciences, Touro University, Vallejo, CA, USA
, MPH show all
Pages 413-421 | Received 28 Oct 2018, Accepted 06 Oct 2019, Published online: 05 Nov 2019
 
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Abstract

Objective

To investigate sex and racial/ethnic differences in overweight and obesity in college students. Participants: A nationally representative sample of 319,342 U.S. college students (mean age = 20.4 years; 67.7% female) from Fall 2011 to Spring 2015. Methods: A secondary data analysis of multi-year cross-sectional data was performed. Multiple logistic regression was used to examine factors (e.g. cumulative grade average, year in school, and living place) associated with overweight and obesity determined from BMI calculated by self-reported height and weight. Results: The prevalence of overweight and obesity was significantly higher for both sexes in Spring 2015 than in Fall 2011. Significant differences were found in overweight and obesity by sex and race/ethnicity. Higher adjusted odds ratios for overweight and obesity were observed for men, blacks, and Hispanics (compared to whites). Asians had the lowest adjusted odds of overweight and obesity. Conclusions: Intervention strategies for the prevention and management of overweight and obesity in U.S. college students should consider sex and racial/ethnic inequalities.

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