Examining School and Neighborhood Effects of Socioeconomic Status on Childhood Obesity in the US

Obesity amongst Kindergartners in Texas is above the national average, particularly among Hispanic students. Research on the impact of school and neighborhood-level SES on obesity in childhood using multilevel models is lacking. Survey data were collected from Hispanic caregivers of pre-kindergarten students in Fall 2019 (n = 237). Students were clustered in thirty-two neighborhoods and twelve schools. The dependent variable was the child's body mass index z-score (BMIz). Covariates included the child's sex, primary caregiver's marital status, education level, relationship to the child, and family income. Level-two variables included neighborhood poverty and school SES. CTableross-classified multilevel linear regression models were conducted to examine the unique associations of neighborhood poverty and school SES with individual student BMIz, and how they interact. Twenty-four percent of students were classified as overweight, and five percent were classified as obese. The models resulted in a significant association between school SES and BMIz (B = -0.13; SE = 0.06; p < 0.05) and between neighborhood poverty and BMIz (B = -1.41; SE = 0.49; p < 0.01). Individual students' BMIz decreased as school SES increased and decreased as neighborhood poverty increased. Neighborhood poverty and school SES appear to play a role in the development of obesity in childhood, although in differing directions.

Automated summary

The prevalence of obesity among kindergarten children in Texas is higher than the national average, especially among Hispanic students. Research on the influence of school and neighborhood-level socioeconomic status (SES) on childhood obesity is limited. This study found that school SES was negatively associated with children's body mass index z-score (BMIz), meaning that as school SES increased, individual students' BMIz decreased. Conversely, neighborhood poverty was positively associated with BMIz, indicating that as neighborhood poverty increased, individual students' BMIz also increased.