Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #119044

Katie Disare, University at Albany, SUNY School of Public Health, 39 Hazen St., Cornwall, NY 12518, (518) 810 - 9313, ccrimmins@asph.org

Research suggests that being overweight is a marker for lower academic performance. This study identified implications of the obesity epidemic by examining whether obese adolescents perform worse academically, and some mechanisms by which this might occur. Further research in this area will help in developing public health prevention strategies for this age group. Data/Methods: Data were derived from Rhode Island's 2003 Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) administered to public school students in grades 9-12 (1,814 respondents). All data were self-reported. Weighted analyses were conducted to adjust for sampling design. The cross-sectional association between overweight and academic performance was determined using body mass index (BMI) based on the subject's self-reported height and weight, and student's self-reported grades. Statistical significance was determined by non-overlapping 95% confidence intervals. Results: Among students with a BMI-for-age between the 15th and 85th percentile (average weight), 68% reported getting A's and B's versus 54% among student's with a BMI-for-age = 95th percentile (overweight). In addition, among the average weight students, 27.9% watched = 3 hours of TV/day, versus 39.9% among overweight students. Among those who watched = 3 hours/day, only 57.2% reported getting A's and B's versus 69% among those who watched = 1 hour/day. None of the aforementioned comparisons had overlapping confidence intervals. Conclusions/PH Relevance: If these results are valid, performing to a lower academic standard is a correlate of overweight among adolescents, and TV watching is one mechanism by which weight impacts academic performance, and vice-versa. Limitations include self-reported data, and the uncertain temporal relationships.

Learning Objectives:

• Participants should be able to identify that being overweight is negatively associated with academic performance among the adolescents in this sample, and that this association is at least partially explained by the amount of time spent watching television.

Keywords: Obesity, Education

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.