US Adult Obesity Prevalence Over 40%, Severe Obesity Over 9%

TOPLINE:

The prevalence of obesity among US adults is 40.3%, and the prevalence of severe obesity is 9.4%, according to the latest data (2021-2023) from the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), in its first update since the pandemic.

METHODOLOGY:

• Obesity was defined as body mass index (BMI) ≥ 30, whereas severe obesity was defined as BMI ≥ 40.
• Data from the August 2021–August 2023 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) were used to estimate obesity and severe obesity prevalence and to test for differences between subgroups.
• Data from four NHANES cycles (2013-2014, 2015-2016, 2017–March 2020, and August 2021–August 2023) were used to assess 10-year trends.

TAKEAWAY:

• There were no significant differences in obesity prevalence between men and women, but severe obesity was higher among women than men in every age group.
• Obesity prevalence was higher among adults aged 40-59 years (46.4%) than those aged 20-39 years (35.5%) and ≥ 60 years (38.9%).
• Obesity prevalence was lower in adults with a bachelor’s degree or more (31.6%) than in adults with less education, but no significant differences between men and women were seen by education level.
• From 2013-2014 through August 2021–August 2023, the age-adjusted prevalence of obesity in adults did not change significantly, while the age-adjusted prevalence of severe obesity increased from 7.7% to 9.7%; changes in the prevalence of obesity and severe obesity between the two most recent survey cycles, March 2017–March 2020 and August 2021–August 2023, were not significant.

IN PRACTICE:

“In the United States, the prevalence of obesity in adults remains above the Healthy People 2030 goal of 36.0%,” the authors wrote. Samuel D. Emmerich of the NCHS added, “Obesity is complex; we cannot predict how it will change going forward, but we can continue to monitor these trends once we’ve collected the data.”

SOURCE:

Emmerich is lead author of the report, which was published online on September 22.

LIMITATIONS:

In this report, obesity is defined by BMI, which has limitations. Body fat may vary by sex, age, race, and Hispanic origin at a given BMI level. BMI does not measure body fat directly nor does it provide information on body fat distribution.

DISCLOSURES:

The authors are NCHS employees. No funding or disclosures were reported.