Racial Differences in Obesity-Related Risk Factors Between 2-Year-Old Children Born of Overweight Mothers

Abstract

Objective: Investigate racial differences in a range of obesity-related socio-behavioral risk factors in children born of obese mothers.

Methods: 142 Black and 151 White 2-year-old children and their parents were surveyed on their physical activity environment, food environment, parental role modeling, eating behaviors, feeding practices, child physical activity, dietary intake, and eating behaviors; body mass index (BMI) for parents and children (BMI z-score) were calculated.

Results: In bivariate analyses, Black families reported significantly more risk factors for early-childhood obesity than White families, including greater availability of soda, more television viewing, and poorer dietary intake. In multivariate analyses adjusting for maternal and socioeconomic factors, the differences between Black and White families on factors including television watching and dietary intake remained significant.

Conclusion: These data show a greater number of risk factors for obesity among Black children and their families compared with White children even after adjustment for maternal BMI and socioeconomic status.

Keywords: children; home environment; obesity.