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Socioeconomic status and body mass index among hispanic children of immigrants and children of natives

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  • Balistreri, K.S.
  • Van Hook, J.

Abstract

Objectives. We examined how Hispanic parents' income and education, combined with their nativity status, influenced the body mass index (BMI) of their children, compared with non-Hispanic White children and their parents. Methods. We used data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998-99 to estimate linear growth curve models of children's initial BMI in kindergarten and change in BMI through fifth grade. Socioeconomic status was measured by logged household income and parental educational attainment (less than high school, high school graduate, some college, college graduate or higher). Results. Parental education was negatively associated with children's BMI (baseline and growth) for non-Hispanic White children. Among Hispanic children, the association of parental education with growth in BMI was negative but much weaker. The weak effect of parental education was not explained by the presence of immigrants in the Hispanic population. Income was strongly negatively associated with children's BMI in kindergarten among children of Hispanic and White natives, but positively associated among Hispanic immigrant families. Conclusions. The positive income-BMI association among Hispanic immigrant children might reflect cultural differences that immigrant parents carry with them from their countries of origin.

Suggested Citation

  • Balistreri, K.S. & Van Hook, J., 2009. "Socioeconomic status and body mass index among hispanic children of immigrants and children of natives," American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, vol. 99(12), pages 2238-2246.
    • Handle: RePEc:aph:ajpbhl:10.2105/ajph.2007.116103_5
    DOI: 10.2105/AJPH.2007.116103
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    Cited by:

    1. Melissa L. Martinson & Sara McLanahan & Jeanne Brooks-Gunn, 2012. "Race/Ethnic and Nativity Disparities in Child Overweight in the United States and England," The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, , vol. 643(1), pages 219-238, September.
    2. Kimbro, Rachel Tolbert & Denney, Justin T., 2013. "Neighborhood context and racial/ethnic differences in young children's obesity: Structural barriers to interventions," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 95(C), pages 97-105.
    3. Buttenheim, Alison M. & Pebley, Anne R. & Hsih, Katie & Chung, Chang Y. & Goldman, Noreen, 2013. "The shape of things to come? Obesity prevalence among foreign-born vs. US-born Mexican youth in California," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 78(C), pages 1-8.
    4. Martin, Molly A. & Van Hook, Jennifer L. & Quiros, Susana, 2015. "Is socioeconomic incorporation associated with a healthier diet? Dietary patterns among Mexican-origin children in the United States," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 147(C), pages 20-29.
    5. Van Hook, Jennifer & Baker, Elizabeth & Altman, Claire E. & Frisco, Michelle L., 2012. "Canaries in a coalmine: Immigration and overweight among Mexican-origin children in the US and Mexico," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 74(2), pages 125-134.
    6. Martin, Molly A. & Frisco, Michelle L. & Nau, Claudia & Burnett, Kristin, 2012. "Social stratification and adolescent overweight in the United States: How income and educational resources matter across families and schools," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 74(4), pages 597-606.
    7. repec:pri:crcwel:wp12-05-ff is not listed on IDEAS
    8. Michelle Frisco & Erin Baumgartner & Jennifer Van Hook, 2019. "The weight of school entry: Weight gain among Hispanic children of immigrants during the elementary school years," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 40(5), pages 95-120.
    9. Jennifer Van Hook & Susana Quiros & Michelle L. Frisco & Emnet Fikru, 2016. "It is Hard to Swim Upstream: Dietary Acculturation Among Mexican-Origin Children," Population Research and Policy Review, Springer;Southern Demographic Association (SDA), vol. 35(2), pages 177-196, April.
    10. Margot I. Jackson & Tate Kihara, 2019. "The Educational Gradient in Health Among Children in Immigrant Families," Population Research and Policy Review, Springer;Southern Demographic Association (SDA), vol. 38(6), pages 869-897, December.
    11. Melissa L. Martinson & Sara McLanahan & Jeanne Brooks-Gunn, 2012. "Race/ Ethnic and Nativity Disparities in Child Overweight in the United States and England," Working Papers 1376, Princeton University, School of Public and International Affairs, Center for Research on Child Wellbeing..

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