Perceived racism and increased waist-to-hip ratios among African American women: The Uterine Fibroid Study

Purpose Psychosocial stress may be a contributor to the accumulation of body fat in the central abdominal region of the body. Traditional psychosocial stress measures have not addressed racism as a stressor. The purpose of this study was to explore the association of perceptions of and passive coping responses to racism with central adiposity in African Americans women. Methods Four hundred and seventy-six African American women who participated in the Uterine Fibroid Study completed a telephone interview on perceived racism. Participants ranged in age from 35 to 49 years. Socio-demographical variables were collected using mailed questionnaires and telephone interviews. Measures of waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) and body mass index (BMI) were obtained during a clinic visit. Multiple logistic regression analyses controlling for BMI were used to evaluate the associations of WHR with perceived racism and passive emotional coping responses to this stressor. Results Cigarette smokers and older age women were found to have higher WHRs. Passive emotional coping was not related to WHR, but higher perceptions of racism appeared to be protective against a high WHR in this population. However, higher levels of general stress were associated with an increased WHR. Conclusions Although perceived racism was surprisingly found to be protective of increased WHRs, more research is needed to understand the role of this stressor on health.