Another factor that may in part explain a link between behavior and obesity in African-American women is the subject of this conversation.

Pediatrician with the Boston Medical Center, Dr. Renee Boynton-Jarrett shares the data the paper she authored, “Child and Adolescent Abuse in Relation to Obesity in Adulthood: The Black Women’s Health Study.”

More than 33,000 women were studied, and there is growing evidence that mild, moderate or severe sexual or physical abuse can cause a girl to become an obese adult.