One in Five Teenagers Is Obese

The percentage of teenagers who are obese has more than quadrupled in the past 40 years, according to the National Center for Health Statistics. Among 12-to-19-year-olds, just 5.0 percent were obese in the 1976–1980 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Forty years later in 2017–2018, a much larger 21.2 percent of teenagers were obese. Obesity is defined as a sex-specific BMI (body mass index) at or above the 95th percentile for the age group in the CDC's 2000 Growth Charts.

Percent of 12-to-19-year-olds who are obese

2017–2018: 21.2%

2007–2008: 18.1%

1999–2000: 14.8%

1976–1980:   5.0%

Teen boys are more likely than teen girls to be obese—22.5 percent of boys and 19.9 percent of girls were obese in 2017–2018. 

Obesity is a growing problem for younger children as well. In the 6-to-11 age group, 20.3 percent were obese in 2017–18 (up from 6.5 percent in 1976–1980). Among children aged 2-to-5, a substantial 13.4 percent were obese in 2017–2018 (up from 5.0 percent in 1976–1980). 

Source: National Center for Health Statistics, Prevalence of Overweight, Obesity, and Severe Obesity among Children and Adolescents Aged 2–19 Years: United States, 1963–1965 through 2017–2018

Obesity Is Rising in Every Age Group

Just ahead of the holiday festivities, the National Center for Health Statistics has issued a report on trends in obesity by age. Do you think this is just a coincidence? Yes, of course it is. Nevertheless, perhaps a review of the trends will rein in the temptation to overindulge in these final days of a difficult year. 

If obesity were a mystery to be solved, then the trends presented by the NCHS report provide an important clue. The clue is this: it's happening across the board. No age group is immune. Obesity is surging among the young, the middle-aged, and the old. Take a look...

Percent obese by age, 1988–94 to 2017–18

	total	20-39	40-59	60-plus
2017-18	42.4%	40.0%	44.8%	42.8%
2007-08	33.7	30.7	36.2	35.1
1999-00	30.5	26.0	33.5	33.5
1988-94	22.9	17.7	27.9	23.7

Note: Obesity is defined as a body mass index at or above 30.0 kg/m²

The data used to calculate these numbers are collected by the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). The survey doesn't simply ask Americans how much they weigh—those self-reports would fall far short of reality. NHANES quantifies reality by dispersing mobile examination units around the country, from which trained health technicians measure the height and weight of a representative sample of the public. Over the past three decades, the survey's measurements show a doubling in the percentage of Americans who are obese among 20-to-39-year olds, a 61 percent increase among 40-to-59-year-olds and an 81 percent rise among people aged 60 or older. That's a lot of overindulging.

Source: National Center for Health Statistics, Prevalence of Overweight, Obesity, and Severe Obesity among Adults Aged 20 and Over: United States, 1960–1962 through 2017–2018

42% of Americans Are Obese

Obesity continues to spread. Among Americans aged 20 or older, 42.4 percent are obese according to the 2017–18 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. This is up from 39.6 percent in the 2015–16 survey. These numbers are based on the measured heights and weights of nationally representative samples of the U.S. population. Obesity is defined as a body mass index of 30 or higher (body mass index = kg/m² or weight in kilograms divided by height in meters squared).

Percentage of Americans aged 20 or older who are obese
2017–2018: 42.4%
2015–2016: 39.6%
2009–2010: 35.7%
1999–2000: 30.5%

No one knows why obesity has become so common, but the causes appear to be affecting everyone equally. Obesity does not vary by sex or age, with 43 percent of men and 42 percent of women measured as obese. By age group, 40 percent of 20-to-39-year-olds, 45 percent of people aged 40 to 59, and 43 percent of those aged 65 or older are obese. Obesity also doesn't vary much by race or Hispanic origin—with one exception. Only 17 percent of Asians are obese versus 42 percent of non-Hispanic Whites, 45 percent of Hispanics, and 50 percent of Blacks.

Source: National Center for Health Statistics, Prevalence of Obesity and Severe Obesity among Adults: United States, 2017–2018

Asians Least Likely to be Obese

Forty percent of Americans aged 20 or older are obese, according to the National Center for Health Statistics. The obesity rate varies by race and Hispanic origin, with Asians least likely to be obese...

Percent of men aged 20 or older who are obese
10.1% of Asians
36.9% of Blacks
37.9% of Whites
43.1% of Hispanics

Percent of women aged 20 or older who are obese
14.8% of Asians
38.0% of Whites
50.6% of Hispanics
54.8% of Blacks

Note: These figures are based on the measured heights and weights of a nationally representative sample of Americans. Obesity is defined as a body mass index (BMI) at or above 30 kg/m². Asians, Blacks, and Whites are non-Hispanic. Hispanics may be of any race.
Source: National Center for Health Statistics, Prevalence of Overweight, Obesity, and Severe Obesity among Adults Aged 20 and Over: United States, 1960–1962 through 2015–2016

The Shocking Rise in Obesity

Something is not right with this picture. Since the early 1960s, according to the National Center for Health Statistics, the percentage of Americans aged 20 to 74 who are obese has climbed from just 13 percent to fully 40 percent. If obesity were an infectious disease, the nation would be in a panic and demanding a cure.

Percent of people aged 20 to 74 who are obese

2015–16: 40.0%

2009–10: 36.1%

1999–00: 30.9%

1976–80: 15.0%

1960–62: 13.4%

These figures are based on the measured heights and weights of nationally representative samples of Americans. Obesity is defined as a body mass index (BMI) at or above 30 kg/m².

Both men and women have succumbed to obesity. Among men aged 20 to 74, the percentage who are obese climbed from 10.7 percent in 1960–62 to 38.3 percent in 2015–16. For women, the comparable figures are 15.8 and 41.6 percent. By age, the NCHS provides trends only back to 1988–94. Here are the numbers...

Obesity among people aged 20 to 39

2015–16: 35.7%

1988–94: 17.7%

Obesity among people aged 40 to 59

2015–16: 42.8%

1988–94: 27.9%

Obesity among people aged 60-plus

2015–16: 41.0%

1988–94: 23.7%

Interestingly, the percentage of Americans who are simply overweight and not obese has not increased over the years—31.5 percent in 1960–62, and 31.0 percent in 2015–16. 

Source: National Center for Health Statistics, Prevalence of Overweight, Obesity, and Severe Obesity among Adults Aged 20 and Over: United States, 1960–1962 through 2015–2016

Nearly Half of Americans Are Trying to Lose Weight

Most Americans are overweight, and many are trying to do something about it. You could almost call it a national obsession.

In the past 12 months, nearly half (49.1%) of adults aged 20 or older tried to lose weight, according to a National Center for Health Statistics report. The attempt to shed pounds is embraced by 52 percent of 40-to-49-year-olds, 50 percent of 20-to-39-year-olds, and 43 percent of those aged 60-plus. The 56 percent majority of women are trying to lose weight, as are 42 percent of men. Even those who don't have a weight problem have gotten caught up in the frenzy. Among adults who are underweight or normal weight, 26.5 percent are trying to lose weight. The figure is 49 percent among those who are overweight and rises to 67 percent among the obese.

Here are the ways Americans are trying to lose weight (multiple responses allowed):

63 percent exercised
63 percent ate less
50 percent ate more fruits, vegetables, or salads
45 percent drank a lot of water
42 percent ate less junk food or fast food
39 percent changed eating habits
39 percent ate less sugar, candy, or sweets
35 percent switched to foods with lower calories
30 percent ate fewer carbohydrates
29 percent ate less fat
16 percent skipped meals

It isn't working. Despite all the frenzied attempts to lose weight, obesity has been rising steadily for years. The latest NCHS report on obesity, based on the measured heights and weights of a nationally representative sample of people aged 20 or older, found 40 percent of Americans to be obese in 2015–2016, up from 36 percent in 2009–2010 and 30.5 percent in 1999–2000.

Source: National Center for Health Statistics, Attempts to Lose Weight among Adults in the United States, 2013–2016

Big Increase in Death by Falling

Older Americans are increasingly likely to die from a fall, the CDC reports. The annual number of people aged 65 or older who die because of falling climbed from 18,000 in 2007 to 30,000 in 2016. Even more telling, the death rate from falls grew steeply during those years—from 47 deaths per 100,000 people aged 65 or older in 2007 to 62 deaths per 100,000 in 2016, a 31 percent increase. The rise in the death rate from falls among older Americans is not a new phenomenon, according to the CDC. Between 2000 and 2006, the rate climbed 42 percent.

Why is falling a growing problem for older Americans? The increase in the 85-plus population may be one factor, says the CDC, since the death rate from falls is highest in the oldest age group. But even among the oldest old, the death rate from falls has surged—up 41 percent between 2007 and 2016. How to explain this? "Nationally, the rate of deaths from falls might be increasing because of longer survival after the onset of common diseases such as heart disease, cancer, and stroke," the CDC speculates.

One possible factor behind the increase, not mentioned in the CDC report, is obesity. Older Americans are increasingly likely to be obese, and the obese may find it more difficult to maintain their balance as they age. Among men aged 75 or older, the prevalence of obesity grew from 18 to 27 percent between 1999–2002 and 2011–14, according to the National Center for Health Statistics. Among their female counterparts, obesity increased from 24 to 31 percent.

If the death rate from falls cannot be reduced, the CDC warns, many more older people will die from falls in the years ahead. "If the current rate remains stable," it reports, "an estimated 43,000 U.S. residents aged ≥ 65 years will die because of a fall in 2030, and if the rate continues to increase, 59,000 fall-related deaths could result."

Source: CDC, Deaths from Fall among Persons Aged ≥ 65 Years—United States, 2007–2016

20% of Older Americans Have Diabetes

Diabetes has become a common health condition among older Americans, according to the National Center for Health Statistics. Overall, 8.8 percent of Americans aged 18 or older had been diagnosed with diabetes as of the first half of 2017, up from 5.3 percent two decades ago in 1997. The percentage with diabetes rises steeply with age...

Percent diagnosed with diabetes, January–September 2017
Aged 18 to 44:   2.8%
Aged 45 to 54:   9.6%
Aged 55 to 64: 15.7%
Aged 65-plus:  19.6%

One factor behind the rise of diabetes is growing obesity. The percentage of adults who are obese (defined as having a body mass index of 30 kg/m² or higher) climbed from 19 percent in 1997 to 31 percent in the first half of 2017. But this estimate of obesity is conservative because it is based on self-reported rather than measured heights and weights. When self-reporting, inches are gained and pounds are shed. According to a 2015–16 NCHS survey of measured heights and weights, a stunning 40 percent of American adults are obese.

Source: National Center for Health Statistics, Early Release of Selected Estimates Based on Data from the January—September 2017 National Health Interview Survey

Obesity by Income and Education, 2011–14

Obesity varies somewhat by income and education, finds the CDC. Analyzing data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, which measures the heights and weights of a nationally representative sample of Americans aged 20 or older, the CDC determined the prevalence of obesity by household income relative to federal poverty level and by education.

Overall, 36 percent of Americans aged 20 or older were found to be obese in the 2011–14 survey round. Obesity is defined as a body mass index of 30 kg/m² or higher. Here are the results by income and education.

Percent obese by household income, 2011–14
39% of those with incomes ≤130% of poverty level
41% of those with incomes from 130% to ≤350% of poverty level
31% of those with incomes ≥350% of poverty level

Percent obese by educational attainment, 2011–14
40% of those with a high school diploma or less education
41% of those with at least some college experience
28% of college graduates

Source: CDC, Prevalence of Obesity among Adults, by Household Income and Education—United States, 2011–2014