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. 2025 Jan 16:29:101756.
doi: 10.1016/j.ssmph.2025.101756. eCollection 2025 Mar.

Social connections with family and friends in adolescence: Shaping body mass index trajectories into adulthood

Katie S Taylor  1 , Harry Tattan-Birch  2 , Martin N Danka  3 , Liam Wright  3 , Eleonora Iob  2 , Daisy Fancourt  2 , Yvonne Kelly  1
Affiliations

Social connections with family and friends in adolescence: Shaping body mass index trajectories into adulthood

Katie S Taylor et al. SSM Popul Health. .

Abstract

Objectives: To investigate whether adolescent social connections influence body mass index (BMI) trajectories into adulthood and explore whether associations are moderated by gender, ethnicity or age.

Methods: Data came from 17,719 American adolescents in grades 7-12 at baseline (1994-95) from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health. Growth curve models tested associations between baseline social connections and BMI trajectories from waves II-V including interactions for gender, ethnicity and age.

Results: Stronger peer connections were associated with flatter BMI trajectories. For example, BMI for those with high peer contact was 0.79 kg/m2 lower [95% CI -1.20, -0.38] 22 years after baseline, compared to those with low contact. Stronger family connections were associated with steeper trajectories. For example, BMI for those with high family contact was 0.52 kg/m2 higher [95% CI 0.01, 1.02] 22 years after baseline, compared to those with low contact.

Discussion: Among adolescents, stronger peer connections were associated with flatter BMI trajectories and stronger family connections with steeper trajectories. Promotion of peer-based interventions could be explored as a strategy to promote healthy weight trajectories.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Marginal effects for BMI by social connections from growth curve models.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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