UICC World Cancer Congress 2006

Studies have consistently shown that African Americans are more sedentary than Whites. Some studies have examined the relationship between socioeconomic status (SES) and physical activity (PA) among African Americans. However, one of the limitations in the literature is that SES has been examined in many different ways, and it is not known whether researchers are measuring the same construct. Previous studies also failed to examine the relationship of SES, age, and gender and their association with PA. Objective: This study examined the relationship between two SES indicators (income and education) and PA among African Americans in church settings; determined which SES variable was most strongly associated with PA; and examined whether the relationship between SES and PA is the same across age and gender. Methods: A total of 607 African American adults completed a survey on health status. Independent variables included income, education, age, and gender. The dependent variable was number of days participants engage in at least 30 minutes of moderate physical activity in an average week. Bivariate associations between PA and demographic were examined. Variables found to be significant were included in a final multivariable regression model. Results: Education and gender were the only variables significantly associated with PA with p-values of p=0.0364 and p=0.0020 respectively. In multivariable models only gender was significant with males having more physical activity than females (p=0.0003).