Latina Women, Obesity, and Culture: Design, Rationale, and Participant Characteristics of the ¡Viva la Cultura Latina! Community-Based Study.

Objectives: Due to the high rates of overweight and obesity in Mexican and Puerto Rican women, interventions that target these groups are in great need. The purpose of this cross-sectional study is to explore the role of four cultural variables (acculturation, acculturative stress, ethnic identity, and cultural values) that may help to explain ethnic disparities in correlates of obesity (diet, physical activity, and body image) among Mexican and Puerto Rican women. This paper describes the study design, measures, and initial analyses of participant characteristics, as well as implications for the development of an obesity intervention.