Table 1.
Descriptive Characteristics of Population Cohort for All Women and by Obesity Status
| Characteristic | All | Nonobese BMI<30 | Obese BMI (30+) | p valuea |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 131 | 94 | 37 | |
| Current body size and shape | ||||
| BMI (kg/m2) | ||||
| Normal/underweight (BMI<25) | 60 (45.8) | - | - | - |
| Overweight (BMI 25–29.9) | 34 (26.0) | - | - | |
| Obese (BMI≥30) | 37 (28.2) | - | - | |
| Mean (SD) | 27.1 (7.0) | 23.6 (3.5) | 36.1 (5.4) | <0.001 |
| Self-reported body size, mean (SD) | ||||
| Assigned BMI (exact)b | 25.7 (5.1) | 23.5 (3.1) | 31.3 (5.0) | <0.001 |
| Assigned BMI (midpoint)b | 27.6 (5.5) | 25.2 (3.7) | 33.5 (4.9) | <0.001 |
| Self-reported body shape | ||||
| Pear | 41 (31.3) | 31 (33.0) | 10 (27.0) | 0.90 |
| Hourglass | 40 (30.5) | 28 (29.8) | 12 (32.4) | |
| Rectangle | 35 (26.7) | 25 (26.6) | 10 (27.0) | |
| Apple | 15 (11.5) | 10 (10.6) | 5 (13.5) | |
| Demographics | ||||
| Age (years) | ||||
| 15–19 | 4 (3.1) | 4 (4.3) | 0 (0) | 0.26 |
| 20–24 | 25 (19.1) | 21 (22.3) | 4 (10.8) | |
| 25–29 | 23 (17.6) | 15 (16.0) | 8 (21.6) | |
| 30–34 | 21 (16.0) | 16 (17.0) | 5 (13.5) | |
| 35–39 | 27 (20.6) | 20 (21.3) | 7 (18.9) | |
| 40–44 | 31 (23.7) | 18 (19.2) | 13 (35.1) | |
| Mean (SD) | 32.3 (7.8) | 31.5 (7.7) | 34.6 (7.5) | 0.04 |
| Race/ethnicity | ||||
| Non-Hispanic white | 106 (80.9) | 78 (83.0) | 28 (75.7) | 0.34 |
| Otherc | 25 (19.1) | 16 (17.0) | 9 (24.3) | |
| Education | ||||
| High school diploma or less | 13 (9.9) | 8 (8.5) | 5 (13.5) | 0.56 |
| Some college or technical school | 58 (44.3) | 41 (43.6) | 17 (46.0) | |
| College degree or greater | 60 (45.8) | 45 (47.9) | 15 (40.5) | |
| Household Incomed | ||||
| Below poverty line | 16 (12.3) | 10 (10.8) | 6 (16.2) | 0.50 |
| Within 180% of poverty line | 17 (13.1) | 14 (15.1) | 3 (8.1) | |
| Above 180% of poverty line | 97 (74.6) | 69 (74.2) | 28 (75.7) | |
| Marital status | ||||
| Married or living as married | 79 (60.3) | 55 (58.5) | 24 (64.9) | 0.56 |
| Single, divorced, or widowed | 52 (39.7) | 39 (41.5) | 13 (35.1) | |
| Reproductive | ||||
| Age at menarche categories | ||||
| ≤11 | 23 (17.6) | 11 (11.7) | 12 (32.4) | 0.006 |
| 12–13 | 71 (54.2) | 51 (54.3) | 20 (54.1) | |
| ≥14 or older | 37 (28.2) | 32 (34.0) | 5 (13.5) | |
| Mean (SD) | 12.7 (1.5) | 12.9 (0.15) | 12.1 (0.26) | 0.006 |
| Parity (no. of live births) | ||||
| Nulliparous | 64 (48.9) | 49 (52.1) | 15 (40.5) | 0.25 |
| Parous | 67 (51.1) | 45 (47.9) | 22 (59.5) | |
| Mean (SD) | 1.3 (1.6) | 1.3 (1.6) | 1.5 (1.5) | 0.39 |
| MRI-confirmed endometriosis | ||||
| No | 113 (89.0) | 81 (88.0) | 32 (91.4) | 0.76 |
| Yes | 14 (11.0) | 11 (12.0) | 3 (8.6) | |
| Lifestyle and health | ||||
| Smoking | ||||
| Never | 96 (73.3) | 70 (74.5) | 26 (70.3) | 0.86 |
| Former | 21 (16.0) | 14 (14.9) | 7 (18.9) | |
| Current | 14 (10.7) | 10 (10.6) | 4 (10.8) | |
| Alcohol (drinks per week) | ||||
| None | 100 (76.3) | 70 (74.5) | 30 (81.1) | 0.50 |
| ≥1 | 31 (23.7) | 24 (25.5) | 7 (18.9) | |
| Health status | ||||
| Excellent | 31 (23.7) | 28 (29.8) | 3 (8.1) | 0.02 |
| Very good | 57 (43.5) | 40 (42.6) | 17 (46.0) | |
| Good | 35 (26.7) | 22 (23.4) | 13 (35.1) | |
| Fair | 8 (6.1) | 4 (4.3) | 4 (10.8) | |
Data presented as n (%) unless otherwise specified.
p value comparing obese and nonobese women by t test (continuous variables) or Fisher's exact test (categorical variables).
Self-reported figure numbers ranged from two to eight. Assigned body mass index (BMI) values were 19.3, 20.7, 22.8, 26.4, 31.6, 35.9, and 40.0 and 20.0, 21.7, 24.6, 29.0, 33.7, 37.9, and 42.5 for exact and midpoint cutoffs, respectively, based on the distribution for white women aged 30–35 years and extrapolation.30
14 (11% of total) Hispanic white, 2 (1.5% of total) Black, 5 (3.8% of total) Asian, and 4 (3.1% of total) other and multiracial.
Based on the 2007 HHS Poverty Guidelines accounting for the numbers of persons in the household for the 48 contiguous states and District of Columbia.
MRI, magnetic resonance imaging; SD, standard deviation.