Race-Ethnicity, Union Status, and Change in Body Mass Index in Young Adulthood

Abstract

This study used data from three waves of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health) and fixed-effects regression to consider whether associations between change in union status and change in BMI were moderated by race/ethnicity. The results indicated that intimate unions were differentially associated with gains in BMI along race/ethnic lines, especially for women. Compared to White women, marriage was associated with larger increases in BMI for Black, Hispanic and Multiracial women, and cohabitation was associated with larger increases for Black and Hispanic women. In contrast, both marriage and cohabitation were associated with less weight gain for Asian compared to White women. Among men, racial/ethnic differences in the relationship between union status and BMI were similarly patterned but less pronounced. The results suggest that, particularly for women, marital status-already its own source of stratification, further exacerbates racial/ethnic disparities in BMI from adolescence to young adulthood.

Keywords: cohabitation; ethnicity; health disparities; marriage; obesity; race.

Figure 1

Change in BMI associated with Change in Union Status, relative to remaining single, by race/ethnicity and gender Note: Author’s own estimates using the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health; Estimates are derived from Model 4 of Table 3 (Men) and Table 4 (Women); Estimates are net of controls for analysis wave, number of children, total unions, education, and school enrollment; Significant differences are underlined and bolded.