Meg Bruening1, Richard MacLehose2, Marla E Eisenberg3, Sunkyung Kim4, Mary Story5, Dianne Neumark-Sztainer2. 1. 1 School of Nutrition and Health Promotion, Arizona State University , Phoenix, AZ. 2. 2 Division of Epidemiology and Community Health, University of Minnesota , Minneapolis, MN. 3. 3 Division of General Pediatrics and Adolescent Health, University of Minnesota , Minneapolis, MN. 4. 4 Department of Biostatistics, University of Minnesota , Minneapolis, MN. 5. 5 Global Health Institute, Duke University , Durham, NC.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Little is known about how interpersonal friend relationships are associated with obesity in young people, particularly with regard to how race/ethnicity, type of friendship, and sex affect the association between friends' and adolescents' weight status. This study examined associations in weight status among adolescents and their friends, exploring magnitudes of associations across friendship type, sex, and race/ethnicity. METHODS: As part of EAT-2010 (Eating and Activity in Teens), friend nominations and anthropometrics were obtained from adolescents (n = 2099: 54% female; 80% nonwhite; mean age: 14.2 ± 1.9 years). Generalized estimating equation logistic regression models were used to test associations between adolescents' overweight/obese status and friends' (i.e., friend group, female friends, male friends, female best friends, and male best friends) overweight/obese status. Interactions by adolescent race/ethnicity were examined. RESULTS: The majority of significant associations were observed among white female adolescents' who had a 22-40% higher prevalence of overweight/obesity if their friends were overweight compared to white females whose friends were not overweight. In contrast, there were few significant differences for other adolescent female and male racial/ethnic groups for girls and boys. Results for friend groups and best friends were generally similar to one another. CONCLUSIONS: The association between friend and adolescent overweight/obese status depended on adolescents' sex, race/ethnicity, and friendship type. Given the similarities among friends, obesity interventions targeting youth, especially white females, should consider involving friends.
BACKGROUND: Little is known about how interpersonal friend relationships are associated with obesity in young people, particularly with regard to how race/ethnicity, type of friendship, and sex affect the association between friends' and adolescents' weight status. This study examined associations in weight status among adolescents and their friends, exploring magnitudes of associations across friendship type, sex, and race/ethnicity. METHODS: As part of EAT-2010 (Eating and Activity in Teens), friend nominations and anthropometrics were obtained from adolescents (n = 2099: 54% female; 80% nonwhite; mean age: 14.2 ± 1.9 years). Generalized estimating equation logistic regression models were used to test associations between adolescents' overweight/obese status and friends' (i.e., friend group, female friends, male friends, female best friends, and male best friends) overweight/obese status. Interactions by adolescent race/ethnicity were examined. RESULTS: The majority of significant associations were observed among white female adolescents' who had a 22-40% higher prevalence of overweight/obesity if their friends were overweight compared to white females whose friends were not overweight. In contrast, there were few significant differences for other adolescent female and male racial/ethnic groups for girls and boys. Results for friend groups and best friends were generally similar to one another. CONCLUSIONS: The association between friend and adolescent overweight/obese status depended on adolescents' sex, race/ethnicity, and friendship type. Given the similarities among friends, obesity interventions targeting youth, especially white females, should consider involving friends.
Authors: Meg Bruening; Marla Eisenberg; Richard MacLehose; Marilyn S Nanney; Mary Story; Dianne Neumark-Sztainer Journal: J Acad Nutr Diet Date: 2012-10 Impact factor: 4.910
Authors: David A Shoham; Liping Tong; Peter J Lamberson; Amy H Auchincloss; Jun Zhang; Lara Dugas; Jay S Kaufman; Richard S Cooper; Amy Luke Journal: PLoS One Date: 2012-06-29 Impact factor: 3.240
Authors: Julia I Bravin; Angela P Gutierrez; Jessica L McCurley; Scott C Roesch; Carmen R Isasi; Alan M Delamater; Krista M Perreira; Linda Van Horn; Sheila F Castañeda; Elizabeth R Pulgaron; Gregory A Talavera; Martha L Daviglus; Maria Lopez-Class; Donglin Zeng; Linda C Gallo Journal: J Behav Med Date: 2019-03-25
Authors: Meg Bruening; Irene van Woerden; David R Schaefer; Daniel Hruschka; Alexandra Brewis; Corrie M Whisner; Genevieve F Dunton; Michael Todd; Punam Ohri-Vachaspati; Melissa N Laska Journal: PLoS One Date: 2018-12-18 Impact factor: 3.240