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Birth cohort effects on abdominal obesity in the United States: the Silent Generation, Baby Boomers and Generation X.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Robinson, WR; Utz, RL; Keyes, KM; Martin, CL; Yang, Y
Published in: Int J Obes (Lond)
August 2013

BACKGROUND: Abdominal obesity predicts a wide range of adverse health outcomes. Over the past several decades, prevalence of abdominal obesity has increased markedly in industrialized countries like the United States No previous analyses, however, have evaluated whether there are birth cohort effects for abdominal obesity. Estimating cohort effects is necessary to forecast future health trends and understand the past population-level trends. METHODS: This analysis evaluated whether there were birth cohort effects for abdominal obesity for the Silent Generation (born 1925-1945), children of the Great Depression; Baby Boomers (born 1946-1964); or Generation X (born 1965-1980). Cohort effects for prevalence of abdominal obesity were estimated using the median polish method with data collected from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) between 1988 and 2008. Respondents were aged 20-74 years. RESULTS: After taking into account age effects and ubiquitous secular changes, the Silent Generation and Generation X had higher cohort-specific prevalence of abdominal obesity than the Baby Boomers. Effects were more pronounced in women than men. CONCLUSIONS: This work presents a novel finding: evidence that the birth cohorts of the post-World War II Baby Boom appeared to have uniquely low cohort effects on abdominal obesity. The growing prosperity of the post-World War II US may have exposed the baby-boom generation to lower levels of psychosocial and socioeconomic stress than the previous or subsequent generations. By identifying factors associated with the Baby Boomers' low cohort-specific sensitivity to the obesogenic environment, the obesity prevention community can identify early-life factors that can protect future generations from excess weight gain.

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Published In

Int J Obes (Lond)

DOI

EISSN

1476-5497

Publication Date

August 2013

Volume

37

Issue

8

Start / End Page

1129 / 1134

Location

England

Related Subject Headings

  • United States
  • Time Factors
  • Socioeconomic Factors
  • Risk Factors
  • Prevalence
  • Population Growth
  • Obesity, Abdominal
  • Nutrition Surveys
  • Middle Aged
  • Male
 

Citation

APA
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ICMJE
MLA
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Robinson, W. R., Utz, R. L., Keyes, K. M., Martin, C. L., & Yang, Y. (2013). Birth cohort effects on abdominal obesity in the United States: the Silent Generation, Baby Boomers and Generation X. Int J Obes (Lond), 37(8), 1129–1134. https://doi.org/10.1038/ijo.2012.198
Robinson, W. R., R. L. Utz, K. M. Keyes, C. L. Martin, and Y. Yang. “Birth cohort effects on abdominal obesity in the United States: the Silent Generation, Baby Boomers and Generation X.Int J Obes (Lond) 37, no. 8 (August 2013): 1129–34. https://doi.org/10.1038/ijo.2012.198.
Robinson WR, Utz RL, Keyes KM, Martin CL, Yang Y. Birth cohort effects on abdominal obesity in the United States: the Silent Generation, Baby Boomers and Generation X. Int J Obes (Lond). 2013 Aug;37(8):1129–34.
Robinson, W. R., et al. “Birth cohort effects on abdominal obesity in the United States: the Silent Generation, Baby Boomers and Generation X.Int J Obes (Lond), vol. 37, no. 8, Aug. 2013, pp. 1129–34. Pubmed, doi:10.1038/ijo.2012.198.
Robinson WR, Utz RL, Keyes KM, Martin CL, Yang Y. Birth cohort effects on abdominal obesity in the United States: the Silent Generation, Baby Boomers and Generation X. Int J Obes (Lond). 2013 Aug;37(8):1129–1134.

Published In

Int J Obes (Lond)

DOI

EISSN

1476-5497

Publication Date

August 2013

Volume

37

Issue

8

Start / End Page

1129 / 1134

Location

England

Related Subject Headings

  • United States
  • Time Factors
  • Socioeconomic Factors
  • Risk Factors
  • Prevalence
  • Population Growth
  • Obesity, Abdominal
  • Nutrition Surveys
  • Middle Aged
  • Male