Race and Gender Differences in Overweight and Obesity over the Life Course

Kristi Williams, Ohio State University
Adrianne Frech, Ohio State University

We use four waves of panel data from the Americans' Changing Lives (ACL) survey to examine whether race disparities in obesity and overweight status change over the adult life course and to determine whether this pattern differs for men and women. A secondary goal is to investigate the role of social stress in contributing to these patterns. We find substantial evidence of a race disparity in obesity, but only among women. African-American women are substantially more likely to be obese than White women at all stages of the life course. However, the complex life course trajectory of change in the probability of being obese or overweight differs significantly for African-American and White women. The race gap in obesity/overweight among women is greatest in mid-life and exposure to psychosocial stress appears to partly explain this association.