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Accuracy of self-reported height and weight in a community-based sample of older African Americans and whites.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Fillenbaum, GG; Kuchibhatla, MN; Whitson, HE; Batch, BC; Svetkey, LP; Pieper, CF; Kraus, WE; Cohen, HJ; Blazer, DG
Published in: J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci
October 2010

BACKGROUND: To ascertain accuracy of self-reported height, weight (and hence body mass index) in African American and white women and men older than 70 years of age. METHOD: The sample consisted of cognitively intact participants at the third in-person wave (1992-1993) of the Duke Established Populations for Epidemiologic Studies of the Elderly (age 71 and older, N = 1761; residents of five adjacent counties, one urban, four rural). During in-person, in-home interviews using trained interviewers, height and weight were self-reported (and measured later in the same visit using a standardized protocol), and information were obtained on race, sex, and age. RESULTS: Accuracy of self-reported height and weight was high (intraclass correlation coefficient 0.85 and 0.97, respectively) but differed as a function of race and age. On average, all groups overestimated their height; whereas (non-Hispanic) white men and women underestimated their weight, African Americans overestimated their weight. Overestimation of height and weight was more marked in persons 85 years and older. Specificity for overweight (body mass index [kg/m(2)] ≥ 25) and obesity (body mass index ≥ 30) ranged from 0.90 to 0.99 for African Americans and whites, but sensitivity was better for African Americans (overweight: 0.81, obesity: 0.89), than for whites (0.66 and 0.57, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Height and weight self-reported by African Americans and whites over the age of 70 can be used in epidemiological studies, with greater caution needed for self-reports of whites, and of persons 85 years of age or older.

Duke Scholars

Published In

J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci

DOI

EISSN

1758-535X

Publication Date

October 2010

Volume

65

Issue

10

Start / End Page

1123 / 1129

Location

United States

Related Subject Headings

  • White People
  • Sex Factors
  • Self Disclosure
  • Reproducibility of Results
  • Male
  • Humans
  • Health Surveys
  • Gerontology
  • Female
  • Body Weight
 

Citation

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ICMJE
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Fillenbaum, G. G., Kuchibhatla, M. N., Whitson, H. E., Batch, B. C., Svetkey, L. P., Pieper, C. F., … Blazer, D. G. (2010). Accuracy of self-reported height and weight in a community-based sample of older African Americans and whites. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci, 65(10), 1123–1129. https://doi.org/10.1093/gerona/glq096
Fillenbaum, Gerda G., Maragatha N. Kuchibhatla, Heather E. Whitson, Bryan C. Batch, Laura P. Svetkey, Carl F. Pieper, William E. Kraus, Harvey J. Cohen, and Dan G. Blazer. “Accuracy of self-reported height and weight in a community-based sample of older African Americans and whites.J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci 65, no. 10 (October 2010): 1123–29. https://doi.org/10.1093/gerona/glq096.
Fillenbaum GG, Kuchibhatla MN, Whitson HE, Batch BC, Svetkey LP, Pieper CF, et al. Accuracy of self-reported height and weight in a community-based sample of older African Americans and whites. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci. 2010 Oct;65(10):1123–9.
Fillenbaum, Gerda G., et al. “Accuracy of self-reported height and weight in a community-based sample of older African Americans and whites.J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci, vol. 65, no. 10, Oct. 2010, pp. 1123–29. Pubmed, doi:10.1093/gerona/glq096.
Fillenbaum GG, Kuchibhatla MN, Whitson HE, Batch BC, Svetkey LP, Pieper CF, Kraus WE, Cohen HJ, Blazer DG. Accuracy of self-reported height and weight in a community-based sample of older African Americans and whites. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci. 2010 Oct;65(10):1123–1129.
Journal cover image

Published In

J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci

DOI

EISSN

1758-535X

Publication Date

October 2010

Volume

65

Issue

10

Start / End Page

1123 / 1129

Location

United States

Related Subject Headings

  • White People
  • Sex Factors
  • Self Disclosure
  • Reproducibility of Results
  • Male
  • Humans
  • Health Surveys
  • Gerontology
  • Female
  • Body Weight