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Journal of Religion and Health
Published in: Journal of Religion and Health 6/2018

01-12-2018 | Original Paper

Religious Attendance and Body Mass: An Examination of Variations by Race and Gender

Authors: Dawn Godbolt, Preeti Vaghela, Amy M. Burdette, Terrence D. Hill

Published in: Journal of Religion and Health | Issue 6/2018

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Abstract

Studies of the association between religious attendance and body mass have yielded mixed results. In this paper, we consider intersectional variations by race and gender to advance our understanding of these inconsistencies. We use data from the 2006–2008 Health and Retirement Study to examine the association between religious attendance and three indicators of body mass: overall body mass index, waist circumference, and waist-to-height ratio (n = 11,457). For White women, attendance is either protective or unrelated to body mass. For Black women, attendance is consistently associated with increased body mass. We find that religious attendance is not associated with body mass among the men.
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Metadata
Title
Religious Attendance and Body Mass: An Examination of Variations by Race and Gender
Authors
Dawn Godbolt
Preeti Vaghela
Amy M. Burdette
Terrence D. Hill
Publication date
01-12-2018
Publisher
Springer US
Published in
Journal of Religion and Health / Issue 6/2018
Print ISSN: 0022-4197
Electronic ISSN: 1573-6571
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-017-0490-1

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