Research shows that there has been a steady increase in the
prevalence of obesity in the United States during past decades, with a trend
that varies across population groups. Research also suggests that the
prevalence of overweight and obesity is higher in racial-ethnic minority
populations. African Americans have the highest obesity rates as compared to
any other group. The racial disparity is
persistent throughout life-course in health outcomes related to morbidity and
mortality and a higher risk for diseases such as hypertension, high blood
pressure, diabetes, gallbladder disease and more.
Statistics also show that there is no significant difference
in obesity rates between genders.
Looking within gender and race, black men’s obesity rates are only 3
percentage points higher than white men and women. In studies completed by
Paeratakul (2002) and Nicholson (2012), it was also found that predictors and
factors that contribute to obesity differ between gender, racial groups, and
socioeconomic status. A substantial body of researches indicated a strong
relationship between ObesityBody, dysmorphic and eating disorder. A study
recommended that BDD appeared relatively common among obese people and found to
be associated with greater severe symptoms and psychopathology in several
domains (Kittler, Menard, & Phillips, 2007).
Obesity Demographics
In spite of the attention that has been placed on the
obesity epidemic in the U.S., obesity rates continue to climb steadily with 68
percent of adults being overweight and 35 percent obese (CDC, 2012). According to the Center for Disease Control
(2012), obesity affects some groups more than others, as black non-Hispanic
people having the highest rates of obesity, followed by Hispanics, than the
white non-Hispanic people. Additionally,
women have higher obesity rates than men, and those with a low socioeconomic
status are more likely to be obese than those with a high socioeconomic
status. Within that, black women are
found to have the highest rate of obesity, with 58.5 percent of the population
currently classified as obese.
Thirty-two per cent of white women and 44.9 per cent of Mexican American
women are obese. Furthermore, since 1980 black women have experienced the
greatest rate increase in obesity since 1988 of 20 per cent, at which time
there was no significant difference between Mexican-American women and black
women (CDC, 2012).
Much of the research on adult obesity rates in the U.S. is
conflicting. Studies that focus on race do not show a distinction between black
women and men, and studies that focus on gender tend to conflate black and
white women. According to Lovejoy
(2001), there are substantial differences in body image and eating behaviours
among black and white women and suggests that women’s bodies represent
constructs of race, class, gender, and cultural identity. Lovejoy’s (2001) research posits that
disturbances in body image and eating manifest physical and psychological
symptoms, but they also may be viewed as manifestations of troubles in the
social inequalities, such as racism, sexism, and classism. Therefore, a
sociological inquiry into body image and eating problems among women from
different ethnic and class backgrounds may reveal much about the relationships
between gender, race, and class inequality, as they are experienced in the
social and psychological lives of women. Not only does the conflation make it
difficult to pinpoint how and why there is such a drastic difference, but it
also compromises the urgency of the obesity epidemic for black women (Lovejoy, 2001).
Research shows that a variety of factors contribute to
obesity, which include diets high in fats, salt, and sugar; overconsumption of
food; sedentary lifestyle; age; lack of access to healthy food options;
genetics; mental health and depression; and media influence, all of which can
be attributed to or influenced by socioeconomic status and cultural image
standards.
Socioeconomic Status. According to Paeratakulet. al (2002) in addition to gender
and race, the prevalence of obesity also varies across socioeconomic classes;
however, the relationship between socioeconomic status (SES) and obesity is
complex and poorly understood. In a study conducted by (Greenwood, & Dal
Cin, 2012). it was stated that overall, the higher the income level, the less likely
individuals are to be overweight; however, this is only true for Hispanic and
non-Hispanic white females. For black women, there is no protection against
obesity concerning the higher or low-income levels. Both the higher and lower
income black women are at high risk for obesity (Greenwood, & Dal Cin,
2012).
Schiemann. Pudrovska and Eccles (2007) focused on race and
older adult women and stated that while black women overall tend to have a
higher BMI (Body Mass Indexes) than white women, there is a difference between
low-SES black women and high-SES black women. Low-SES black women were found to
have a higher BMI than high-SES black women (Schieman, Pudrovska, &Eccles,
2007). According to Schieman (2007), high-SES may represent greater lifetime
access to health information that encouraged weight loss or a more
conscientious approach to weight maintenance and a healthier lifestyle. These studies show that black women are at
risk for obesity no matter what compared to white women; however, there are
differences in risk level within the group. This suggests that there may be
another factor to consider and that even with access to resources black women
have high BMI.
In the research article, “Life-Course Socioeconomic Position
and Obesity in African American Women”, Dr Sherman James et. al (2006) delved
deeper into the complexities of SES for black women and obesity. The research studied obesity in black women
in relationship to their SES in childhood and adulthood. Findings revealed that women who were disadvantaged
in both childhood and adulthood had the greatest odds for obesity. Upwardly mobile women (those who were
disadvantaged in childhood, but not in adulthood) had a 55% greater odds of
obesity than women who were advantaged across the life course. Women who were
advantaged in childhood, but not in adulthood had lower odds of obesity than
women who maintained their advantaged position (James, et al., 2006). These studies demonstrate the complexities of
SES for black women by showing that high SES does not guarantee a lower BMI or
odds for obesity. Any experience with an advantaged lifestyle, especially as
children, improved their odds for lower BMI.
This suggests that black women’s lifestyle choices and body image are
influenced early in life, and consistently throughout life. Due to the relationship between low SES and
high BMI, it says that overall black women have lower SES than white women.
James (2006) also explored potential pathways through which
socioeconomic deprivation in childhood could increase the odds of obesity in
adulthood independent of adulthood SES.
The research found that adverse early postnatal physiological
disturbances, both socially patterned by maternal SES, can predispose the
developing fetus to an array of health difficulties later in life. Also, those who experience socioeconomic
deprivation in childhood are more likely to engage in detrimental
health-related behaviours, such as poor nutrition and low levels of physical
activity in both childhood and adulthood (James, et al., 2006).
James (2006) also addressed the reasons behind inconsistent
findings in research about black women’s obesity and its relationship to
SES. Differences in findings could be
attributed to geographical settings, variations in how SES is measured across
studies, or how intergenerational social mobility dynamics that effectively
determine whether the inverse relationship between adulthood SES and obesity
will be large, small, or nonexistent. In general, these studies make it clear
that black women have lower SES than white women, which leads to many other
problems that directly affect obesity individually and intergenerationally.
therefore the ratio of psychopathology is higher among African American women
as compared to white American women.
Cultural Image Standards. Researchers James
Wood Falconer and Helen A. Neville (2000) claim that although body image has
gained increasing attention in psychology, there is the little empirical
investigation on the body image of black women. Generally, results from these
studies suggest that black women have more positive body images compared with
white women (Falconer & Neville, 2000). According to James et al (2008), an
individual’s body image, as well as his or her satisfaction with this image,
may be instrumental in determining whether weight control is a major concern
for the individual. The poor body image or overweight develop the symptoms of
Body dis-morphic disorders and other psychopathological symptoms among people.
In Falconer and
Neville’s (2000) study,they dispute previous research that suggests that higher
BMI scores are associated with less body image satisfaction. They found that black women with higher body
mass were more likely to report greater satisfaction with specific aspects of
their bodies. The study attributed this to the fact that black culture is more
accepting of larger women than society’s thin ideal. According to Falconer and Neville (2000),
African American culture places a higher value on characteristics such as large
buttocks and hips. Many women can still maintain the satisfaction within these
distinct body areas.
In a study
conducted by Greenwood and Dal Cin (2012) about media body image ideals, they
found that black women experience body dissatisfaction and surveillance when
deviating from a more curvaceous standard compared to white women. They stated
that body surveillance tendencies signify a degree of preoccupation and worry
over whether one’s body is being approved by others (Greenwood & Dal Cin,
2012). Additionally, a study done on
older adults Schieman (2007) found that low-SES black women tend to perceive
heavier body types as more attractive than do black and white women with
high-SES. These studies pull out the fact that black women’s body image
satisfaction is influenced by external approval. They also imply that low-SES
are associated with heavier bodies more curvaceous bodies. Black women have
lower-SES than white women, which may result in higher BMI and obesity rates in
black women.