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NCHS Health E Stats [Internet]. Hyattsville (MD): National Center for Health Statistics (US); 2024 Sep-. doi: 10.15620/cdc/174643
Introduction:
This Health E-Stat presents the prevalence of overweight, obesity, and severe obesity, using measured heights and weights, among adults age 20 and older in the United States during August 2021–August 2023. Trends since 1960–1962 are also presented.
Methods:
Data from the 1960–1962 through August 2021–August 2023 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) were used for analyses. Body mass index (BMI), expressed as weight in kilograms divided by height in meters squared, was used to classify overweight (BMI 25.0–29.9), obesity (BMI ≥ 30.0), and severe obesity (BMI ≥ 40.0). Age-adjusted trends in overweight, obesity, and severe obesity prevalence were shown for adults age 20 and older since 1988, and for adults ages 20–74 since 1960. More detailed estimates of obesity prevalence by age and sex and by race and Hispanic origin and sex are presented from 1988 to August 2023. NHANES examination sample weights were incorporated into the estimation process. Data analyses were performed using SAS-callable SUDAAN version 11.0.
Key findings:
Age-adjusted results from the August 2021–August 2023 NHANES indicate that an estimated 40.3% of U.S. adults age 20 and older had obesity, including 9.7% with severe obesity, and another 31.7% were overweight.
Keywords:
anthropometry, National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES)This report presents historical trends in overweight, obesity, and severe obesity among adults using measured heights and weights from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES).
In August 2021–August 2023, the age-adjusted prevalence of U.S. adults age 20 and older with obesity was 40.3%, including 9.7% with severe obesity and another 31.7% who were overweight. Unadjusted estimates were 40.3% for obesity, 9.4% for severe obesity, and 32.1% for overweight.
Age-adjusted trends in overweight, obesity, and severe obesity prevalence from 1960–1962 through August 2021–August 2023 are shown in Table 1. Because surveys before 1988 did not include people older than age 74, Table 1 shows the prevalence for adults age 20 and older since 1988, and for adults ages 20–74 for all survey periods. The age-adjusted sex-specific trends of overweight, obesity, and severe obesity among adults ages 20–74 from 1960–1962 through August 2021–August 2023 are shown in the Figure. Table 2 contains the prevalence of obesity by age for men and women since 1988–1994, and Table 3 contains the age-adjusted prevalence of obesity by race and Hispanic origin for men and women since 1988–1994.
Table 1
Age-adjusted prevalence of overweight, obesity, and severe obesity among adults, by sex: United States, 1960–1962 through August 2021–August 2023
Table 2
Prevalence of obesity among adults age 20 and older, by sex and age: United States, 1988–1994 through August 2021–August 2023
Table 3
Age-adjusted prevalence of obesity among adults age 20 and older, by sex and race and Hispanic origin: United States, 1988–1994 through August 2021–August 2023
Data source and methods
NHANES, conducted by the National Center for Health Statistics, is a stratified, multistage probability sample of the U.S. civilian noninstitutionalized population. NHANES included oversampling of total Hispanic people starting in 2007–2008 and non-Hispanic Asian (subsequently, Asian) people starting in 2011–2012. Data collection was suspended in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and resumed in August 2021 using a new sample design with no oversampling by race and Hispanic origin (1).
A household interview and a health examination are conducted for each survey participant. During the examination, height and weight are measured by trained technicians in a mobile examination center using standardized measuring procedures and equipment. Pregnant women and people missing a valid height or weight measurement are not included in the data analysis.
Body mass index (BMI), expressed as weight in kilograms divided by height in meters squared (kg/m2), is commonly used to classify overweight (BMI 25.0–29.9), obesity (BMI at or above 30.0), and severe obesity (BMI at or above 40.0). The prevalence of obesity as measured by BMI among Asian adults is consistently lower than that reported for non-Hispanic White, non-Hispanic Black (subsequently, Black), and Hispanic adults. Although BMI is widely used as a measure of body fat, at a given BMI level, body fat may vary by sex, age, and race and Hispanic origin. In particular, research suggests that health risks may begin at a lower BMI among Asian people compared with other race and Hispanic-origin groups (2,3). Additionally, research suggests that BMI overestimates adiposity (body fat) among Black people at a given BMI compared with others (4).
Examination sample weights were used to account for the complex sample design. Analyses were performed using SAS version 9.4 (SAS Institute, Cary, N.C.) and SAS-callable SUDAAN version 11.0 (RTI International, Research Triangle Park, N.C.).
For additional information on NHANES methods, visit: https://wwwn.cdc.gov/nchs/nhanes/analyticguidelines.aspx.
For more detailed estimates, see:
- Flegal KM, Carroll MD, Ogden CL, Johnson CL. Prevalence and trends in obesity among US adults, 1999–2000. JAMA. 2002 Oct;288(14):1723–7. DOI: https://www.dx.doi.org/10.1001/jama.288.14.1723.
- Ogden CL, Carroll MD, Curtin LR, McDowell MA, Tabak CJ, Flegal KM. Prevalence of overweight and obesity in the United States, 1999–2004. JAMA. 2006 Apr;295(13):1549–55. DOI: https://www.dx.doi.org/10.1001/jama.295.13.1549.
- Ogden CL, Carroll MD, McDowell MA, Flegal KM. Obesity among adults in the United States—No statistically significant change since 2003–2004. NCHS Data Brief. 2007 Nov;(1):1–8. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db01.pdf.
- Flegal KM, Carroll MD, Ogden CL, Curtin LR. Prevalence and trends in obesity among US adults, 1999–2008. JAMA. 2010 Jan;303(3):235–41. DOI: https://www.dx.doi.org/10.1001/jama.2009.2014.
- Flegal KM, Carroll MD, Kit BK, Ogden CL. Prevalence of obesity and trends in the distribution of body mass index among US adults, 1999–2010. JAMA. 2012 Feb;307(5):491–7. DOI: https://www.dx.doi.org/10.1001/jama.2012.39.
- Ogden CL, Carroll MD, Kit BK, Flegal KM. Prevalence of childhood and adult obesity in the United States, 2011–2012. JAMA. 2014 Feb;311(8):806–14. DOI: https://www.dx.doi.org/10.1001/jama.2014.732.
- Flegal KM, Kruszon-Moran D, Carroll MD, Fryar CD, Ogden CL. Trends in obesity among adults in the United States, 2005 to 2014. JAMA. 2016 Jun;315(21):2284–91. DOI: https://www.dx.doi.org/10.1001/jama.2016.6458.
- Hales CM, Fryar CD, Carroll MD, Freedman DS, Ogden CL. Trends in obesity and severe obesity prevalence in US youth and adults by sex and age, 2007–2008 to 2015–2016. JAMA. 2018 Apr;319(16):1723–5. DOI: https://www.dx.doi.org/10.1001/jama.2018.3060.
- Ogden CL, Fryar CD, Martin CB, Freedman DS, Carroll MD, Gu Q, et al. Trends in obesity prevalence by race and Hispanic origin—1999–2000 to 2017–2018. JAMA. 2020 Sep;324(12):1208–10. DOI: https://www.dx.doi.org/10.1001/jama.2020.14590.
- Emmerich SD, Fryar CD, Stierman B, Gu Q, Afful J, Ogden CL. Trends in Obesity-Related Measures Among US Children, Adolescents, and Adults. JAMA. 2025 Mar;333(12):1082–4. DOI: https://www.dx.doi.org/10.1001/jama.2024.27676.
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This Health E-Stat supersedes the earlier version, “Prevalence of Overweight, Obesity, and Severe Obesity Among Adults Aged 20 and Over: United States, 1960–1962 Through 2017–2018,” available from: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hestat/obesity-adult-17-18/obesity-adult.htm.
- Fryar CD, Afful J, Saif NT. Prevalence of overweight, obesity, and severe obesity among adults age 20 and older: United States, 1960–1962 Through August 2021–August 2023. NCHS Health E-Stat. 2026 Feb;(111):1–7. DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.15620/cdc/174643.
- Review Prevalence of Overweight, Obesity, and Severe Obesity Among Children and Adolescents Ages 2–19 Years: United States, 1963–1965 Through August 2021–August 2023.[NCHS Health E Stats. 2024]Review Prevalence of Overweight, Obesity, and Severe Obesity Among Children and Adolescents Ages 2–19 Years: United States, 1963–1965 Through August 2021–August 2023.Noiman A, Fryar CD, Saif NT, Afful J. NCHS Health E Stats. 2024 Sep
- Obesity and Severe Obesity Prevalence in Adults: United States, August 2021-August 2023.[NCHS Data Brief. 2024]Obesity and Severe Obesity Prevalence in Adults: United States, August 2021-August 2023.Emmerich SD, Fryar CD, Stierman B, Ogden CL. NCHS Data Brief. 2024 Sep; (508).
- Trends in body mass index, overweight and obesity among adults in the USA, the NHANES from 2003 to 2018: a repeat cross-sectional survey.[BMJ Open. 2022]Trends in body mass index, overweight and obesity among adults in the USA, the NHANES from 2003 to 2018: a repeat cross-sectional survey.Li M, Gong W, Wang S, Li Z. BMJ Open. 2022 Dec 16; 12(12):e065425. Epub 2022 Dec 16.
- Overweight and obesity in the United States: prevalence and trends, 1960-1994.[Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord....]Overweight and obesity in the United States: prevalence and trends, 1960-1994.Flegal KM, Carroll MD, Kuczmarski RJ, Johnson CL. Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord. 1998 Jan; 22(1):39-47.
- Review Screening and Interventions for Childhood Overweight[ 2005]Review Screening and Interventions for Childhood OverweightWhitlock EP, Williams SB, Gold R, Smith P, Shipman S. 2005 Jul
- Prevalence of Overweight, Obesity, and Severe Obesity Among Adults Age 20 and Ol...Prevalence of Overweight, Obesity, and Severe Obesity Among Adults Age 20 and Older: United States, 1960–1962 Through August 2021–August 2023 - NCHS Health E Stats
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