In England, there has been fairly significant increase in the mean weight of the population over the last quarter-century. In 1998, the mean weight was under 81 kilograms for men and around 68 kilograms for women. By 2022, the mean weight of men was 85.8 kilograms and the mean weight of women was 72.8 kilograms.

In 2022, men aged 55 to 64 years had an average body mass index (BMI) of 29 kg/m2 and women in the same age group had a BMI of 28.8 kg/m2, the highest mean BMI across all the age groups. Apart from individuals aged 16 to 24 years, every demographic in England had an average BMI which is classified as overweight.An increasing problem It is shown that the mean BMI of individuals for both men and women has been generally increasing year-on-year in England. The numbers show in England, as in the rest of the United Kingdom (UK), that the prevalence of obesity is an increasing health problem. The prevalence of obesity in women in England has increased by around nine percent since 2000, while for men the share of obesity has increased by six percent. Strain on the health service Being overweight increases the chances of developing serious health problems such as diabetes, heart disease and certain types of cancers. In the period 2019/20, England experienced over 10.7 thousand hospital admissions with a primary diagnosis of obesity, whereas in 2002/03 this figure was only 1,275 admissions. Furthermore, the number of bariatric surgeries taking place in England, particularly among women, has significantly increased over the last fifteen years. In 2019/20, over 5.4 thousand bariatric surgery procedures were performed on women and approximately 1.3 thousand were carried out on men.

This statistic displays the breakdown of body weight class among men and women in the United Kingdom (UK) in 2015. Of respondents, 39 percent of men and 46 percent of women had a healthy body weight.

This report presents information on obesity, physical activity and diet drawn together from a variety of sources for England. More information can be found in the source publications which contain a wider range of data and analysis. Each section provides an overview of key findings, as well as providing links to relevant documents and sources. Some of the data have been published previously by NHS Digital. A data visualisation tool (link provided within the key facts) allows users to select obesity related hospital admissions data for any Local Authority (as contained in the data tables), along with time series data from 2013/14. Regional and national comparisons are also provided. The report includes information on: Obesity related hospital admissions, including obesity related bariatric surgery. Obesity prevalence. Physical activity levels. Walking and cycling rates. Prescriptions items for the treatment of obesity. Perception of weight and weight management. Food and drink purchases and expenditure. Fruit and vegetable consumption. Key facts cover the latest year of data available: Hospital admissions: 2018/19 Adult obesity: 2018 Childhood obesity: 2018/19 Adult physical activity: 12 months to November 2019 Children and young people's physical activity: 2018/19 academic year

Supplementary files for article Supplementary information files for Height and body-mass index trajectories of school-aged children and adolescents from 1985 to 2019 in 200 countries and territories: a pooled analysis of 2181 population-based studies with 65 million participants.BackgroundComparable global data on health and nutrition of school-aged children and adolescents are scarce. We aimed to estimate age trajectories and time trends in mean height and mean body-mass index (BMI), which measures weight gain beyond what is expected from height gain, for school-aged children and adolescents.MethodsFor this pooled analysis, we used a database of cardiometabolic risk factors collated by the Non-Communicable Disease Risk Factor Collaboration. We applied a Bayesian hierarchical model to estimate trends from 1985 to 2019 in mean height and mean BMI in 1-year age groups for ages 5–19 years. The model allowed for non-linear changes over time in mean height and mean BMI and for non-linear changes with age of children and adolescents, including periods of rapid growth during adolescence.FindingsWe pooled data from 2181 population-based studies, with measurements of height and weight in 65 million participants in 200 countries and territories. In 2019, we estimated a difference of 20 cm or higher in mean height of 19-year-old adolescents between countries with the tallest populations (the Netherlands, Montenegro, Estonia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina for boys; and the Netherlands, Montenegro, Denmark, and Iceland for girls) and those with the shortest populations (Timor-Leste, Laos, Solomon Islands, and Papua New Guinea for boys; and Guatemala, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Timor-Leste for girls). In the same year, the difference between the highest mean BMI (in Pacific island countries, Kuwait, Bahrain, The Bahamas, Chile, the USA, and New Zealand for both boys and girls and in South Africa for girls) and lowest mean BMI (in India, Bangladesh, Timor-Leste, Ethiopia, and Chad for boys and girls; and in Japan and Romania for girls) was approximately 9–10 kg/m2. In some countries, children aged 5 years started with healthier height or BMI than the global median and, in some cases, as healthy as the best performing countries, but they became progressively less healthy compared with their comparators as they grew older by not growing as tall (eg, boys in Austria and Barbados, and girls in Belgium and Puerto Rico) or gaining too much weight for their height (eg, girls and boys in Kuwait, Bahrain, Fiji, Jamaica, and Mexico; and girls in South Africa and New Zealand). In other countries, growing children overtook the height of their comparators (eg, Latvia, Czech Republic, Morocco, and Iran) or curbed their weight gain (eg, Italy, France, and Croatia) in late childhood and adolescence. When changes in both height and BMI were considered, girls in South Korea, Vietnam, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and some central Asian countries (eg, Armenia and Azerbaijan), and boys in central and western Europe (eg, Portugal, Denmark, Poland, and Montenegro) had the healthiest changes in anthropometric status over the past 3·5 decades because, compared with children and adolescents in other countries, they had a much larger gain in height than they did in BMI. The unhealthiest changes—gaining too little height, too much weight for their height compared with children in other countries, or both—occurred in many countries in sub-Saharan Africa, New Zealand, and the USA for boys and girls; in Malaysia and some Pacific island nations for boys; and in Mexico for girls.InterpretationThe height and BMI trajectories over age and time of school-aged children and adolescents are highly variable across countries, which indicates heterogeneous nutritional quality and lifelong health advantages and risks.

The Health Survey for England (HSE) monitors trends in the nation’s health and care. It provides information about adults aged 16 and over, and children aged 0 to 15, living in private households in England. The survey consists of an interview, followed by a visit from a nurse who takes some measurements and blood and saliva samples. Interviews for children aged 0 to 12 were carried out with a parent; children aged 13 to 15 were interviewed directly. Children aged 8 to 15 filled in a self-completion booklet about their drinking and smoking behaviour and young adults, aged between 16 and 17 completed these questions directly into a computer. A total of 8,205 adults (aged 16 and over) and 2,095 children (aged 0 to 15) were interviewed in the 2019 survey. 4,947 adults and 1,169 children had a nurse visit. Each survey in the series includes core questions, and measurements such as blood pressure, height and weight measurements and analysis of blood and saliva samples. In addition, there are modules of questions on specific topics that vary from year to year. The Main Findings follow this page via the link at the bottom. Detailed reports and a link to the supporting Excel tables can be found further down this page and include: • Overweight and obesity in adults and children • Eating Disorders • Adults' health-related behaviours (includes smoking and alcohol consumption) • Children’s health (includes smoking and alcohol consumption) • Providing care to family and friends • Adults' health (includes diabetes, hypertension, and high cholesterol) • Use of health care services

Supplementary files for article "Are associations of adulthood overweight and obesity with all-cause mortality, cardiovascular disease, and obesity-related cancer modified by comparative body weight at age 10 years in the UK Biobank study?"Article abstractObjectiveAdults living with overweight or obesity do not represent a single homogenous group in terms of mortality and disease risks. The aim of our study was to evaluate how the associations of adulthood overweight and obesity with mortality and incident disease are modified by (i.e., differ according to) self-reported childhood body weight categories.MethodsThe sample comprised 191,181 men and 242,806 women aged 40-69 years (in 2006-2010) in the UK Biobank. The outcomes were all-cause mortality, incident cardiovascular disease (CVD), and incident obesity-related cancer. Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to estimate how the associations with the outcomes of adulthood weight status (normal weight, overweight, obesity) differed according to perceived body weight at age 10 years (about average, thinner, plumper). To triangulate results using an approach that better accounts for confounding, analyses were repeated using previously developed and validated polygenic risk scores (PRSs) for childhood body weight and adulthood BMI, categorised into three-tier variables using the same proportions as in the observational variables.ResultsIn both sexes, adulthood obesity was associated with higher hazards of all outcomes. However, the associations of obesity with all-cause mortality and incident CVD were stronger in adults who reported being thinner at 10 years. For example, obesity was associated with a 1.28 (1.21, 1.35) times higher hazard of all-cause mortality in men who reported being an average weight child, but among men who reported being a thinner child this estimate was 1.63 (1.53, 1.75). The ratio between these two estimates was 1.28 (1.17, 1.40). There was also some evidence that the associations of obesity with all-cause mortality and incident CVD were stronger in adults who reported being plumper at 10 years. In genetic analyses, however, there was no evidence that the association of obesity (according to the adult PRS) with mortality or incident CVD differed according to childhood body size (according to the child PRS). For incident obesity-related cancer, the evidence for effect modification was limited and inconsistent between the observational and genetic analyses.ConclusionsGreater risks for all-cause mortality and incident CVD in adults with obesity who perceive themselves to have been a thinner or plumper than average child may be due to confounding and/or recall bias.

BackgroundA significantly higher proportion of UK Black ethnic adults live with overweight or obesity, compared to their White British counterparts. The role of obesity in excess infection rates and mortality from COVID-19 has increased the need to understand if weight management interventions are appropriate and effective for Black ethnic groups. There is a paucity of existing research on weight management services in Black populations, and whether anticipated or experienced institutional and interpersonal racism in the healthcare and more widely affects engagement in these services. Understanding the lived experience of target populations and views of service providers delivering programmes is essential for timely service improvement.MethodsA qualitative study using semi-structured interviews was conducted in June–October 2021 among 18 Black African and Black Caribbean men and women interested in losing weight and 10 weight management service providers.ResultsThe results highlighted a positive view of life in the United Kingdom (UK), whether born in the UK or born abroad, but one which was marred by racism. Weight gain was attributed by participants to unhealthy behaviours and the environment, with improving appearance and preventing ill health key motivators for weight loss. Participants relied on self-help to address their overweight, with the role of primary care in weight management contested as a source of support. Anticipated or previously experienced racism in the health care system and more widely, accounted for some of the lack of engagement with services. Participants and service providers agreed on the lack of relevance of existing services to Black populations, including limited culturally tailored resources. Community based, ethnically matched, and flexibly delivered weight management services were suggested as ideal, and could form the basis of a set of recommendations for research and practice.ConclusionCultural tailoring of existing services and new programmes, and cultural competency training are needed. These actions are required within systemic changes, such as interventions to address discrimination. Our qualitative insights form the basis for advancing further work and research to improve existing services to address the weight-related inequality faced by UK Black ethnic groups.

Average birth weight and height for sample population percentiles for males and females.

This statistic displays the proportion of children with a healthy weight in Scotland in 2019, by gender and age. In this year, ** percent of boys compared to ** percent of girls aged 12 to 15 years old in Scotland were classed as having a healthy body mass index.

The Health Survey for England series was designed to monitor trends in the nation's health, to estimate the proportion of people in England who have specified health conditions, and to estimate the prevalence of certain risk factors and combinations of risk factors associated with these conditions. The surveys provide regular information that cannot be obtained from other sources on a range of aspects concerning the public's health and many of the factors that affect health. Each survey in the series includes core questions and measurements (such as blood pressure, height and weight, and analysis of blood and saliva samples), as well as modules of questions on topics that vary from year to year. Four topics are reported for the first time this year: medicines, eye care, end of life care and a comparison of the health of shift workers and non-shift workers. Many chapters in this report contain more charts and less detailed descriptive text than in previous survey reports. We would very much welcome readers' views about this change. The Health Survey for England has been carried out since 1994 by the Joint Health Surveys Unit of NatCen Social Research and the Research Department of Epidemiology and Public Health at UCL (University College London). A total of 8,795 adults and 2,185 children were interviewed in 2013. Please note this release was revised on 11 December 2014. This revision corrected Chapter 7 figures for median and mean number of portions of fruit and vegetables and the associated standard errors in the tables and corrected the 2013 data points for men and women aged 33-64 in Figure 10P - Morbid Obesity Prevalence, 1993-2013.

A mixed methods collection.

The main aim of this project was to broaden and deepen understanding of 'normal' adolescent boys' and girls' body image concerns, in order to provide an appropriate basis for interventions aimed at promoting healthier diet and lifestyle. The project combined quantitative and qualitative methods. Data on nearly 5,000 adolescents, collected as part of a DH-funded survey on smoking were analysed to determine the effects of gender, age and pubescent status on body image concerns and related attitudes. This analysis was used to design a qualitative study, carried out in one of the schools that had participated in the earlier study. Adolescents in Year 8, 10 and 12 talked about their feelings concerning body parts, fatness, physical attractiveness, media and peer influences, and strategies for achieving the 'ideal body' in both focus group discussions and individual interviews. One adolescent from each focus group was interviewed individually, in order to allow a systematic comparison of these two qualitative methods.

The Health Survey for England (HSE) is part of a programme of surveys commissioned by the Health and Social Care Information Centre. It has been carried out since 1994 by the Joint Health Surveys Unit of NatCen Social Research and the Research Department of Epidemiology and Public Health at UCL (University College London). The study provides regular information that cannot be obtained from other sources on a range of aspects concerning the public's health and many of the factors that affect health. The series of Health Surveys for England was designed to monitor trends in the nation's health, to estimate the proportion of people in England who have specified health conditions, and to estimate the prevalence of certain risk factors and combinations of risk factors associated with these conditions. The survey is also used to monitor progress towards selected health targets. Each survey in the series includes core questions and measurements (such as blood pressure, anthropometric measurements and analysis of blood and saliva samples), as well as modules of questions on specific issues that vary from year to year. In some years, the core sample has also been augmented by an additional boosted sample from a specific population subgroup, such as minority ethnic groups, older people or children; there was no boost in 2012. This is the 22nd annual Health Survey for England. All surveys have covered the adult population aged 16 and over living in private households in England. Since 1995, the surveys have included children who live in households selected for the survey; children aged 2-15 were included from 1995, and infants under two years old were added in 2001. Those living in institutions were outside the scope of the survey. This should be borne in mind when considering survey findings, since the institutional population is likely to be older and less healthy than those living in private households. The HSE in 2012 provided a representative sample of the population at both national and regional level. 9,024 addresses were randomly selected in 564 postcode sectors, issued over twelve months from January to December 2012. Where an address was found to have multiple dwelling units, a random selection was made and a single dwelling unit was included. Where there were multiple households at a dwelling unit, again one was selected at random. All adults and children in selected households were eligible for inclusion in the survey. Where there were three or more children aged 0-15 in a household, two of the children were selected at random to limit the respondent burden for parents. A nurse visit was arranged for all participants who consented. A total of 8,291 adults and 2,043 children were interviewed. A household response rate of 64 per cent was achieved. 5,470 adults and 1,203 children had a nurse visit. It should be noted that, as in 2011, there was no child boost sample in 2012. Thus the scope for analyses of some data for children may be limited by relatively small sample sizes.

Supplementary Information files for: Contribution of 20-year body mass index and waist circumference history to poor cardiometabolic health in overweight/obese and normal weight adults: a cohort studyBackground and Aims: We investigated the associations of 20-year body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference (WC) histories with risk of being 1) metabolically unhealthy overweight/obese (MUOO) vs metabolically healthy overweight/obese (MHOO) and 2) metabolically unhealthy normal weight (MUNW) vs metabolically healthy normal weight (MHNW). Methods and Results: Participants comprised 3,018 adults (2,280 males; 738 females) with BMI and WC measured, every ~5 years, in 1991-1994, 1997-1999, 2002-2004, 2007-2009, and 2012-2013. Mean age in 2012-2013 was 69.3 years, with a range of 59.7-82.2 years. Duration was defined as the number of times a person was overweight/obese (or centrally obese) across the 5 visits, severity as each person’s mean BMI (or WC), and variability as the within-person standard deviation of BMI (or WC). At the 2013-2013 visit, participants were categorised based on their weight (overweight/obese or normal weight; body mass index (BMI) ≥25 kg/m2 ) and health status (healthy or unhealthy; two or more of hypertension, low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, high triglycerides, high glucose, and high homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance). Logistic regression was used to estimate associations with the risk of being MUNW (reference MHNW) and MUOO (reference MHOO) at the last visit. BMI and WC severity were each related to increased risk of being unhealthy, with estimates being stronger among normal weight than overweight/obese adults. The estimates for variability exposures became null upon adjustment for severity. Individuals who were overweight/obese at all 5 time points had a 1.60 (0.96-2.67) times higher risk of being MUOO than MHOO compared to those who were only overweight/obese at one (i.e., the last) time point. The corresponding estimate for central obesity was 4.20 (2.88-6.12). Greater duration was also related to higher risk of MUNW than MHNW. Conclusion: Being overweight/obese yet healthy seems to be partially attributable to lower exposure to adiposity across 20 years of adulthood. The results highlight the importance of maintaining optimum and stable BMI and WC, both in adults who become and do not become overweight/obese.

The Mayors Health Inequalities Strategy sets out his plans to tackle unfair differences in health to make London a healthier, fairer city. This dataset reports the 14 headline population health indicators that will be used to monitor London’s progress in reducing health inequalities over the next ten years. The themes of the indicators are listed below. The measures will monitor an identified inequality gap between defined populations. Healthy life expectancy at birth – male Healthy life expectancy at birth – female Children born with low birth weight School readiness among children Excess weight in children at age 10-11 (year 6) Excess mortality in adults with serious mental illness Suicide Mortality caused by Particulate Matter (PM2.5) Employment Feeling of belonging to a community (provisional) HIV late diagnosis People diagnosed with TB Adults walking or cycling for two periods of ten minutes each day Smoking

Values are expressed in SD scores (i.e., we calculated residuals after adjusting for age and the first 10 PC in men and women, followed by inverse normal transformation to a distribution with mean of 0 and SD of 1). Cochran–Armitage test for trend was used to compare carriers and noncarriers as well as individuals of normal weight and with obesity for IPAQ, comparative body size at age 10 years and comparative height at age 10 years. P values are reported for adjusted means for age, sex, and 10 PCs. IPAQ, International Physical Activity Questionnaire; MET, metabolic equivalent minutes; PC, principle component; PRSBMI, standardized scores of the polygenic risk score of BMI with mean 0 and SD of 1; SD, standard deviation. (XLSX)

Randomised and quasi-randomised controlled trials of brief lifestyle interventions delivered at any stage during pregnancy, and across the BMI spectrum, were included. Studies of that included pregnant women diagnosed with any complications that might affect diet or physical activity behaviours were excluded. Eligible interventions had to be ‘brief’, where the intervention could be delivered during a routine point of contact (face to face or via telephone) (Werch et al., 2006). An inclusive approach to study selection was taken. Interventions could be delivered over more than one point of contact if the duration was kept intentionally brief and could realistically be delivered within a national healthcare system, without requiring significant expansion of workforce or training. For one intervention where duration of contact between participants and the healthcare practitioner was unclear, the study was retained for the purpose of the review (Jeffries, Shub, Walker, Hiscock, & Permezel, 2009). Comparator groups in the eligible trials needed to be a standard care control group. Interventions had to report on the effectiveness of changing energy balance behaviours (either diet, physical activity and/or weight monitoring behaviours) in pregnant women. The primary outcome of interest from the brief interventions was total GWG in kilograms, reported as the change in weight from first point of entry into the antenatal care pathway (i.e. baseline) to just before delivery (at variable time points in the third trimester). Meta-analyses were conducted on GWG as a continuous outcome (in kg) and as a binary outcome (proportion of pregnant women exceeding IOM GWG guidelines). Mean differences in total GWG in kilograms between the intervention and control groups were calculated for studies that reported continuous outcomes. In studies that compared the brief intervention to a more intense intervention group, only the comparison against standard care was taken forward for quantitative pooling. For all dichotomous outcomes, odds ratios for the likelihood of exceeding IOM-recommended GWG were calculated. Intention–to-treat data were used where reported by the individual studies. To estimate the overall pooled weighted mean effect size of the interventions, random effects models were chosen to allow for anticipated between-study variance (DerSimonian & Laird, 1986). Subgroup analyses were conducted, comparing interventions for women who entered pregnancy with overweight or obesity (BMI >25 kg/m2) compared to interventions delivered to women across the BMI spectrum. Further subgroup analyses by risk of bias and the brief intervention delivery strategy were also undertaken. For meta-analysis, assessment of between-study heterogeneity was judged by the p-value for heterogeneity and calculation of the I2 value. Significance of subgroup and sensitivity analysis was judged by the p value for heterogeneity (Higgins & Green, 2008). P-values of

*It should be noted that the expedition ended on day 47 and the expedition end value was extrapolated from the measurements made on days 40 and 45.

The Harpenden Growth Study consisted of 701 white British children, 282 girls and 419 boys, born between 1929 and 1965 (median 1949) and recruited from the Highfield Children’s Home, Harpenden, UK between 1949 and 1969 at ages between 0.9 and 20 years. They were predominantly children of manual workers or the lower middle class. The dataset includes serial anthropometric measurements (e.g., weight, height, and subcutaneous skinfold thicknesses), Tanner stages of pubertal development, and skeletal age estimates from hand-wrist x-rays. In total, there are 8,188 observations (i.e., 11.6 per child on average) making Harpenden one of the most intensive growth studies ever. Data collection ended in 1975. All of the data were collected by a single, highly skilled, and experienced anthropometrist (Reginald Whitehouse) and, as such, are of very high quality.