Obesity, obesity-related behaviors and coronary heart disease risk factors in black and white premenopausal women.

Obesity is more common in black women than in white women in the USA, but there are few studies comparing black and white females on behaviors related to obesity or on the relationship between obesity and cardiovascular risk factors. We studied 490 white and 48 black premenopausal, nondiabetic, nonhypertensive women, aged 42-50 years, who were participating in the Pittsburgh Healthy Women Study. Black women had a higher BMI than white women and had a higher suprailiac:triceps ratio, suggesting a more central distribution of body fat. Weight gain since age 20 was greater in black women than in white women. Blacks and whites did not differ in caloric intake, smoking or alcohol consumption. However, there were marked differences in physical activity, with blacks reporting significantly less activity than whites. Differences in body fat distribution, weight gain since age 20 and activity remained after adjusting for education. Blacks also had higher blood pressure and poorer glucose tolerance than whites. The low activity level of black women should be considered when designing weight loss interventions.