Funded Research
Social Demography and Adolescent Obesity
Source: NIH/NICHD/University of Wisconsin
Active: 06/6/05 - 05/31/09
Investigator(s):
Molly Martin
Michelle Frisco
Gary Sandefur (University of Wisconsin)
This study uses The National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health) to examine the socio-demographic causes and consequences of adolescent obesity. The project, which emphasizes the social and behavioral dimensions of this epidemic, has three primary goals: to explore the family-level social factors that predict adolescent weight net of genetic influences using data on sibling pairs; to explore how overweight during adolescence impacts several demographic markers of young people's transition to adulthood (e.g. academic attainment, union formation, childbearing, and entry into the work force); and to explore young people's weight trajectories as they move from adolescence into early adulthood.
