Racial/Ethnic Variations in Weight Management Among Patients with Overweight and Obesity Status Who Are Served by Health Centres (Clinical Obesity)
Summary: This study examines racial/ethnic variations in receipt of provider recommendations on weight loss, patient adherence, perception of weight, attempts at weight loss and actual weight loss among patients with overweight/obesity status at Health Resources and Services Administration‐funded health centres (HC). The authors used a 2014 nationally representative survey of adult HC patients with overweight/obesity status in 2018 and reported the HC was their usual source of care. Authors used logistic regression models to assess the interaction of race/ethnicity and having obesity in (1) provider recommendations of diet or (2) exercise, (3) patient adherence to diet or (4) exercise, (5) perceptions of weight and (6) weight loss attempts. A multinomial regression model was used to examine (7) weight loss or gain vs. no change and a linear regression model to evaluate (8) percent weight change.
Findings: Authors identified several areas of improvement including systematic recommendations to all patients and identifying better approaches to motivate patients to achieve weight loss. HCs already adopt a practice of culturally competent care through providing interpretation and other enabling services, as well as training to their provider workforce. Continuing to provide such residency programs and enabling services may better equip providers in serving culturally diverse patients with overweight and obesity.
Findings highlight the importance of multi‐faceted approaches to reduce obesity among racially/ethnically diverse patients in order to reduce the prevalence of obesity in the United States.
Authors found Black PwOW/OB (OR = 1.65) experienced greater odds of receiving diet recommendations than Whites. They found limited racial/ethnic disparities in adherence. Black (OR = 0.41), Hispanic/Latino (OR = 0.45), and American Indian/Alaska Native (OR = 0.41) PwOW/OB had lower odds of perceiving themselves as overweight. Black (OR = 1.68) and Hispanic (OR = 1.98) PwOW/OB had a greater odds of reporting weight gain, and Asian PwOW/OB (OR = 0.42) had lower odds of reporting weight loss than Whites. Disparities in provider diet recommendations among Blacks and Hispanics indicated the importance of personalized weight management recommendations. Understanding underlying reasons for discordance between self‐perception and observed weight among different groups is needed. Overall increase in weight, despite current interventions, should be addressed through targeted racially/ethnically appropriate approaches.Findings highlight the importance of multi‐faceted approaches to reduce obesity among racially/ethnically diverse patients in order to reduce the prevalence of obesity in the United States.
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