Physical Activity and Fruit and Vegetable Intake among Black and White Female College Students at Two- and Four-Year Colleges and Universities

Carla J. Berg, Sherell Brown Goodwin, Erin Stratton, Kincaid Lowe, Linda Grimsley, Jan Rodd, Catherine Williams, Cheri Mattox, Bruce Foster

Albany State University, Albany, USA.
Central Georgia Technical College, Macon, USA.
Chattahoochee Technical College, Marietta, USA.
Department of Behavioral Sciences and Health Education, Emory University, Atlanta, USA.

DOI: 10.4236/ojpm.2014.44029                

Abstract

Objective: We compared fruit and vegetable (FV) intake, physical activity (PA), and overweight/ obesity among Black and White females attending two- and four-year colleges. Methods: We recruited 24,055 students at six colleges in the Southeast to complete an online survey, yielding 4840 responses (20.1% response rate). The current analyses focused on the 2276 Black and White females. Results: Binary logistic regression analyses indicated that recommended FV intake among White females was associated with greater extraversion (Odds Ratio [OR] = 1.05, 95% Confidence Interval [CI] 1.00, 1.11, p = 0.05) and greater conscientiousness (OR = 1.08, CI 1.02, 1.14, p = 0.01), whereas among Black females correlates included greater openness to experience (OR = 1.08, CI 1.01, 1.15, p = 0.03). Ordinal logistic regression analyses indicated that, among White females, greater PA was associated with attending a four-year college (Beta = 0.27, CI 0.01, 0.53, p = 0.04), whereas among Black females, correlates were with younger age (Beta = -0.01, CI -0.17, -0.03, p = 0.003) and greater emotional stability (Beta = 0.07, CI 0.01, 0.13, p = 0.02). Binary logistic regression analyses indicated that, among White females, being overweight or obese was associated with older age (OR = 1.08, CI 1.01, 1.16, p = 0.03), attending a two-year college (OR = 1.62, CI 1.22, 2.16, p = 0.001), and lower satisfaction with life (OR = 0.96, CI 0.94, 0.98, p = 0.002), whereas among Black females, being overweight or obese was associated with older age (OR = 1.87, CI 1.10, 1.28, p < 0.001). Conclusions: Identifying factors related to obesity-related factors is critical in developing interventions targeting factors associated with overweight and obesity among Black and White females attending two- and four-year colleges. Moreover, understanding different college settings and the contextual factors associated with overweight/obesity is critical.

Keywords

Obesity; Physical Activity; Nutrition; College Students; Female Health

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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