The associations of multiple dimensions of discrimination and abdominal fat in African American adults: the Jackson Heart Study.

BACKGROUND: Discrimination may be adversely associated with abdominal obesity, but few studies have examined associations with abdominal fat. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to examine whether discrimination was independently associated with visceral (VAT) and subcutaneous (SAT) fat and whether these associations differed by sex and age. METHODS: Participants self-reported experiences of everyday and lifetime discrimination. The main reason for and the coping response to these experiences were also reported. VAT and SAT were quantified by computed tomography. RESULTS: In fully adjusted models, higher reports of everyday discrimination were associated with greater SAT, but not VAT, volumes in men only: SAT increased by 3.6 (standard error = 1.8) cm(3) for each unit increase in the everyday discrimination score. In women, higher reports of lifetime non-racial discrimination were associated with greater VAT (71.6 ± 32.0, P < 0.05) and SAT (212.6 ± 83.6, P < 0.05), but these relationships were attenuated after controlling for body mass index. CONCLUSIONS: These cross-sectional findings do not fully support the independent hypothesis of discrimination and abdominal fat. Additional investigations involving longitudinal designs are warranted.