The association of body mass index with social and economic disadvantage in women and men

Background Although an inverse relationship between socioeconomic status and body mass index (BMI) is well documented, broad population studies focusing on the association between BMI and various forms of disadvantage such as unemployment, low income or social isolation are rare. Methods A nationwide, representative sample of 25-64-year-old Finnish subjects (n = 6016) was classified according to their BMI into four groups: 'thin' (BMI <20),'normal' (BMI 20-24.9), 'overweight' (BMI 25-29.9) and 'obese' (BMI greater than or equal to 30). Multivariable analyses using logistic regression were conducted with this BMI-grouping as an independent variable to predict social and economic disadvantage, controlling simultaneously for age, educational attainment, region of residence, and limiting long-standing illness. Results In women, overweight was associated with current unemployment and obesity with long-term unemployment as well as absence of close friends outside the family circle. Both overweight and obesity were associated with low individual earnings. Obese women were also most likely to have low household disposable and individual incomes; a similar pattern was seen among thin women. A small subgroup of thin men were socially and economically disadvantaged with all our indicators whereas excess body weight was not problematic for men. Conclusions Deviant body weight is associated with social and economic disadvantage in a gender-specific and partly curvilinear way. In particular, obese women face multiple social and economic disadvantage.