Biomedical subjects

Penny Gordon-Larsen

Publications and source records attributed to Penny Gordon-Larsen.

22 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

PubMed2003

Acculturation and overweight-related behaviors among Hispanic immigrants to the US: the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health.

Little is known about the factors underlying the striking increase in overweight occurring between first and second generation US immigrants. Using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, this study addressed two goals. First, we determined which measures of acculturation (defined as the acquisition of dominant cultural norms by members of a non-dominant group) were important. Second, we determined how the acculturation process affected differences in overweight and its proximate determinants (e.g., physical activity, diet, and smoking) as immigrants acculturated to American society. In addition, we sought to elucidate the role of underlying structural factors (e.g., family income and crime) and acculturation factors (e.g., language spoken at home and proportion of foreign-born neighbors) in generation differences in overweight. Results showed clear structural and acculturation differences between foreign and US-born immigrants to the US. Foreign-born immigrants were more likely to have lower family income and maternal education, and to live in areas of higher immigrant density and greater linguistic isolation. In addition, results suggested rapid acculturation of overweight-related behaviors, such as diet, smoking, and inactivity, in US-born relative to foreign-born immigrants. Multivariate analysis indicated that longer US residence was associated with increased overweight among Puerto Ricans and Cubans. Predicted probabilities showed that controlling for acculturation and proximate factors increased overweight among foreign-born adolescents, but had minimal impact for US-born adolescents. Thus, without the beneficial pattern of: acculturation factors, diet, and physical activity, first generation Hispanic adolescents would have higher overweight prevalence. We found important generation differences in structural, acculturation, and proximate overweight determinants. These lifestyle differences between foreign- and US-born Hispanic adolescent immigrants are likely to underlie the striking increase in overweight prevalence between first and subsequent generation of US residence.

Acculturation↗

PubMed2003

The relationship of ethnicity, socioeconomic factors, and overweight in US adolescents.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the extent to which race/ethnic differences in income and education account for sex-specific disparities in overweight prevalence in white, African American, Hispanic, and Asian U.S. teens. RESEARCH METHODS AND PROCEDURES: We used nationally representative data collected from 13113 U.S. adolescents enrolled in the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health. Logistic regression models were used to examine the relationship of family income and parental education to overweight prevalence (body mass index >or= 85th percentile of age and sex-specific cutoff points from the 2000 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/National Center for Health Statistics growth charts). In addition, we used coefficients from our logistic regression models to project the effects on overweight prevalence of equalizing the socioeconomic status (SES) differences between race/ethnic groups. RESULTS: Keeping adolescents in their same environments and changing only family income and parental education had a limited effect on the disparities in overweight prevalence. Ethnicity-SES-overweight differences were greater among females than males. Given that overweight prevalence decreased with increasing SES among white females and remained elevated and even increased among higher SES African-American females, African-American/white disparity in overweight prevalence increased at the highest SES. Conversely, disparity was lessened at the highest SES for white, Hispanic, and Asian females. Among males, disparity was lowest at the average SES level. DISCUSSION: One cannot automatically assume that the benefits of increased SES found among white adults will transfer to other gender-age-ethnic groups. Our findings suggest that efforts to reduce overweight disparities between ethnic groups must look beyond income and education and focus on other factors, such as environmental, contextual, biological, and sociocultural factors.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2002

Ethnic differences in physical activity and inactivity patterns and overweight status.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the relationship between physical activity and inactivity patterns and overweight in U.S. adolescents using baseline and 1-year change in activity and inactivity data. RESEARCH METHODS AND PROCEDURES: Nationally representative data from 12,759 participants (6997 non-Hispanic whites, 2676 non-Hispanic blacks, 2185 Hispanics, and 901 Asians) in the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (1995 and 1996). Data on moderate to vigorous and low-intensity physical activity, TV/video viewing, and video game/computer use were obtained from questionnaires. Multivariate models assessed the association of overweight (body mass index > or = 95th percentile Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/National Center for Health Statistics 2000 curves) with initial (and 1-year change) activity and inactivity levels, controlling for age, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, urban residence, cigarette smoking, and region of residence. RESULTS: Overweight prevalence was positively associated with high level TV/video viewing among white boys (odds ratio [OR] = 1.52; 95% confidence interval [1.08 to 2.14]) and girls (OR = 2.45 [1.51 to 3.97]). The odds of overweight decreased with high levels of moderate to vigorous physical activity among white boys (OR = 0.81 [0.76 to 0.87]), non-Hispanic black boys (OR = 0.86 [0.76 to 0.98]) and girls (OR = 0.88 [0.78 to 0.99]), and Hispanic boys (OR = 0.90 [0.83 to 0.97]) and girls (OR = 0.91 [0.84 to 0.99]). DISCUSSION: Predicted probabilities generated from the logistic regression models, which examined the experimental effects of altering hours of TV/video viewing and bouts of moderate to vigorous physical activity, show lower overweight among adolescents who watched less TV per week combined with frequent moderate to vigorous physical activity than those who watched more TV per week combined with fewer bouts of weekly moderate to vigorous physical activity. Predicted probabilities suggest important sex and ethnic differences in these associations.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Growth patterns of Filipino children indicate potential compensatory growth.

BACKGROUND: The extent to which compensatory growth can occur after 2 years of age among children who were stunted in infancy has been questioned due, in part, to limitations in the data used to explore the issue. AIM: This study uses longitudinal data with multiple measurements over the entirety of the growth period to explore the potential for post-infancy compensatory growth in a developing country context. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Data comes from >2000 Filipino youths from the Cebu Longitudinal Health and Nutrition Survey. Anthropometric data were collected bimonthly from 0 to 2 years, and at mean ages of 8, 11.5, 15.5 and 18.5 years. Growth indicators and influences on growth are compared among three groups: those that improved, tracked or worsened in change in height-for-age Z-score from 2 to 18.5 years of age. RESULTS: Those that improved in growth from 2 to 18.5 years grew slowest before 2 years of age, while the opposite was true among those that worsened. The reversal took place during the prepubescent growth spurt. Those that improved tended to have less educated but taller mothers. Regression to the mean and the potential for compensatory growth are discussed.

Adolescent↗