Summary of key findings
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Bias in self-reported estimates of obesity in Canadian health surveys: An update on correction equations for adults
Publication: Health Reports 2011:22(3) www.statcan.gc.ca/healthreports
Authors: Margot Shields, Sarah Connor Gorber, Ian Janssen and Mark S. Tremblay
Data: The 2008 and 2005 Canadian Community Health Surveys and the 2007 to 2009 Canadian Health Measures Survey
This study compares the bias in self-reported height, weight and body mass index (BMI) in the 2008 and 2005 Canadian Community Health Surveys and the 2007 to 2009 Canadian Health Measures Survey. The feasibility of using correction equations to adjust self-reported 2008 Canadian Community Health Survey values to more closely approximate measured values is assessed.
The bias in reporting height was similar across all three surveys, but the bias in reporting weight was larger in the two Canadian Community Health Surveys, and as a result, discrepancies in estimates of obesity between self-reported and measured values were greater. Application of correction equations based on 2005 Canadian Community Health Survey data to self-reported values in the 2008 Canadian Community Health Survey produced more accurate estimates of obesity than did equations based on Canadian Health Measures Survey data.
For more information about this article, contact Margot Shields (1-613-951-4177; Margot.Shields@statcan.gc.ca),Health Analysis Division, Statistics Canada.
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