Explaining the Body Mass Index Gaps between Turkish Immigrants and Germans in West Germany 2002-2012: A Decomposition Analysis of Socio-Economic Causes

41 Pages Posted: 30 Sep 2015

See all articles by Rui Dang

Rui Dang

Istanbul Technical University; Dartmouth College - Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice; Rhine-Westphalia Institute for Economic Research (RWI-Essen)

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Date Written: September 28, 2015

Abstract

In this paper, we decompose body mass index (BMI) differences between Turkish immigrants and Germans in West Germany for women and men. We focus on isolating the part of BMI differences that can be explained by differences in observed socioeconomic status from the part attributable to differences in coefficients. Our results reveal that female Turkish immigrants are on average more obese than female Germans; however, there exists no significant difference in obesity among males. Our results also indicate that differences in socioeconomic status between female Turkish immigrants and Germans explain significant parts of the obesity disparities between these two groups.

Keywords: BMI disparity; Turkish immigrants in Germany; Decomposition; Quantile regression

JEL Classification: J15; I14; C21

Suggested Citation

Dang, Rui, Explaining the Body Mass Index Gaps between Turkish Immigrants and Germans in West Germany 2002-2012: A Decomposition Analysis of Socio-Economic Causes (September 28, 2015). Ruhr Economic Paper No. 580, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2666408 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2666408

Rui Dang (Contact Author)

Istanbul Technical University ( email )

Maçka
Istambul
Turkey

Dartmouth College - Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice ( email )

United States

Rhine-Westphalia Institute for Economic Research (RWI-Essen) ( email )

Hohenzollernstr. 1-3
Essen, 45128
Germany

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