Abstract
Objectives: This study sought to examine sex and ethnicity/race differences in the associations between self-esteem, weight status, and trying to lose weight among young adults in the United States. Methods: Data were drawn from Wave III (2001/2002) of the US National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health public-use sample). Body mass index (BMI) was measured during in-home visits. Weight-loss patterns, self-esteem, and sociodemographics were assessed via self-reports. Logistic regression models were fitted among 4,594 young adults who were aged 21.8 (SD=1.8) years. Results: Obesity was associated with relatively poor self-esteem among both African American (P=.007) and White females (P<.006). In comparison to not trying to lose weight, trying to lose weight was associated with poorer self-esteem among normal-weight (OR=1.23, 95% CI=1.03–1.47) and overweight (OR=1.36, 95% CI=1.07–1.72) White females, but not among White females with obesity (OR=1.19, 95% CI=.92–1.55), African American females (OR=.81, 95% CI=.57–1.17), or males (OR=1.00, 95% CI=.88–1.14). Conclusion: The decision to lose weight was linked with poor self-esteem solely among normal-weight and overweight White females. African American and White females with obesity presented with relatively poor self-esteem, but their decision to lose weight was not linked with their self-esteem. More studies are needed to understand the psychological mechanism behind the decision to lose weight among White females with obesity, African American females, and males.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 485-494 |
| Number of pages | 10 |
| Journal | Ethnicity and Disease |
| Volume | 29 |
| Issue number | 3 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 2019 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:This research uses data from Add Health, a program project directed by Kathleen Mullan Harris and designed by J. Richard Udry, Peter S. Bearman, and Kathleen Mullan Harris at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and funded by grant P01-HD31921 from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, with cooperative funding from 23 other federal agencies and foundations. Special acknowledgment is due Ronald R. Rindfuss and Barbara Entwisle for assistance in the original design of the Add Health Study. Information on how to obtain the Add Health data files is available on the Add Health website (http://www.cpc.unc.edu/addhealth). No direct support was received from grant P01-HD31921 for this analysis.
Funding Information:
This research uses data from Add Health, a program project directed by Kathleen Mullan Harris and designed by J. Richard Udry, Peter S. Bearman, and Kathleen Mullan Harris at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and funded by grant P01-HD31921 from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, with cooperative funding from 23 other federal agencies and foundations. Special acknowledgment is due Ronald R. Rindfuss and Barbara Entwisle for assistance in the original design of the Add Health Study. Information on how to obtain the Add Health data files is available on the Add Health website (http://www.cpc.unc.edu/ addhealth). No direct support was received from grant P01-HD31921 for this analysis.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2019 Ethnicity and Disease, Inc.. All rights reserved.
Keywords
- Add Health
- African Americans
- Eating Behaviors
- Ethnicity
- Self-Esteem
- Weight Loss
- Young Adults
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Epidemiology
