Obesity, Race and Class

In this new paper in the American Journal of Public Health, Esa M. Davis of Case Western and her colleagues say weight-loss methods that work for white and middle-class women probably don't work as well for African-Americans and poor people.

Some of the claims seem obvious enough -- diets that don't take cost into account aren't a good idea for low-income families. Others, like the finding that whites lean toward exercise, as a weight-loss solution, more than black women, who prefer to stress changes in what they eat -- aren't as predictable.

Of course, it shouldn't be surprising that race and class might affect people's outlook on food. It would be interesting to know how women in other human kinds (working class, wealthy, Asian-American, etc.) differ.