The prevalence of obesity in the United States has risen gradually over the past decade. As of 2023, around ** percent of the population aged 18 years and older was obese. Obesity is a growing problem in many parts of the world, but is particularly troubling in the United States. Obesity in the United States The states with the highest prevalence of obesity are West Virginia, Mississippi, and Arkansas. As of 2023, a shocking ** percent of the population in West Virginia were obese. The percentage of adults aged 65 years and older who are obese has grown in recent years, compounding health issues that develop with age. Health impacts of obesity Obesity is linked to several negative health impacts including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and certain types of cancer. Unsurprisingly, the prevalence of diagnosed diabetes has increased in the United States over the years. As of 2022, around *** percent of the population had been diagnosed with diabetes. Some of the most common types of cancers caused by obesity include breast cancer in postmenopausal women, colon and rectum cancer, and corpus and uterus cancer.

West Virginia, Mississippi, and Arkansas are the U.S. states with the highest percentage of their population who are obese. The states with the lowest percentage of their population who are obese include Colorado, Hawaii, and Massachusetts. Obesity in the United States Obesity is a growing problem in many countries around the world, but the United States has the highest rate of obesity among all OECD countries. The prevalence of obesity in the United States has risen steadily over the previous two decades, with no signs of declining. Obesity in the U.S. is more common among women than men, and overweight and obesity rates are higher among African Americans than any other race or ethnicity. Causes and health impacts Obesity is most commonly the result of a combination of poor diet, overeating, physical inactivity, and a genetic susceptibility. Obesity is associated with various negative health impacts, including an increased risk of cardiovascular diseases, certain types of cancer, and diabetes type 2. As of 2022, around 8.4 percent of the U.S. population had been diagnosed with diabetes. Diabetes is currently the eighth leading cause of death in the United States.

The adult obesity rate, or the percentage of the county population (age 18 and older*) that is obese, or has a Body Mass Index (BMI) equal to or greater than 30 [kg/m2], is illustrative of a serious health problem, in Champaign County, statewide, and nationally.

The adult obesity rate data shown here spans from Reporting Years (RY) 2015 to 2024. Champaign County’s adult obesity rate fluctuated during this time, peaking in RY 2022. The adult obesity rates for Champaign County, Illinois, and the United States were all above 30% in RY 2024, but the Champaign County rate was lower than the state and national rates. All counties in Illinois had an adult obesity rate above 30% in RY 2024, but Champaign County's rate is one of the lowest among all Illinois counties.

Obesity is a health problem in and of itself, and is commonly known to exacerbate other health problems. It is included in our set of indicators because it can be easily measured and compared between Champaign County and other areas.

This data was sourced from the University of Wisconsin’s Population Health Institute’s and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s County Health Rankings & Roadmaps. Each year’s County Health Rankings uses data from the most recent previous years that data is available. Therefore, the 2024 County Health Rankings (“Reporting Year” in the table) uses data from 2021 (“Data Year” in the table). The survey methodology changed in Reporting Year 2015 for Data Year 2011, which is why the historical data shown here begins at that time. No data is available for Data Year 2018. The County Health Rankings website notes to use caution if comparing RY 2024 data with prior years.

*The percentage of the county population measured for obesity was age 20 and older through Reporting Year 2021, but starting in Reporting Year 2022 the percentage of the county population measured for obesity was age 18 and older.

Source: University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute. County Health Rankings & Roadmaps 2024. www.countyhealthrankings.org.

In 2023, it was estimated that around 37 percent of adults with an annual income of less than 15,000 U.S. dollars were obese, compared to 29 percent of those with an annual income of 75,000 dollars or more. This statistic shows the percentage of U.S. adults who were obese in 2023, by income.

Between 2017 and 2021, the highest incidence of obesity-associated cancer in the United States was among Black individuals, with a rate of 184.8 per 100,000 people. This graph shows the rate of obesity-related cancers per 100,000 people from 2017 to 2021 in the United States, by race and ethnicity.

Between 2017 and 2021, West Virginia had the highest incidence of obesity-associated cancer in the United States, with a rate of 188 per 100,000 people. This graph shows the rate of obesity-related cancers per 100,000 people from 2017 to 2021 in the United States, by state.

In 2023, Black adults had the highest obesity rates of any race or ethnicity in the United States, followed by American Indians/Alaska Natives and Hispanics. As of that time, around ** percent of all Black adults were obese. Asians/Pacific Islanders had by far the lowest obesity rates. Obesity in the United States Obesity is a present and growing problem in the United States. An astonishing ** percent of the adult population in the U.S. is now considered obese. Obesity rates can vary substantially by state, with around ** percent of the adult population in West Virginia reportedly obese, compared to ** percent of adults in Colorado. The states with the highest rates of obesity include West Virginia, Mississippi, and Arkansas. Diabetes Being overweight and obese can lead to a number of health problems, including heart disease, cancer, and diabetes. Being overweight or obese is one of the most common causes of type 2 diabetes, a condition in which the body does not use insulin properly, causing blood sugar levels to rise. It is estimated that just over ***** percent of adults in the U.S. have been diagnosed with diabetes. Diabetes is now the seventh leading cause of death in the United States, accounting for ***** percent of all deaths.

Number and percentage of adults who reported being overweight or obese, by age group and sex.

Between 2015 and 2018, obesity rates in U.S. children and adolescents stood at 19.3 and 20.9 percent, respectively. This is a noteworthy increase compared to the percentages seen between 1988 and 1994.

U.S. high school obesity rates

Roughly 18 percent of black, as well as Hispanic students in the United States, were obese between 2016 and 2017. Male obesity rates were noticeably higher than those of female students for each of the ethnicities during the measured period. For example, about 22 percent of male Hispanic high school students were obese, compared to 14 percent of female students. The American states with the highest number of obese high school students in 2019 included Mississippi, West Virginia, and Arkansas, respectively. Mississippi had a high school student obesity rate of over 23 percent that year.

Physically inactive Americans

Adults from Mississippi and Arkansas were also reported to be some of the least physically active people in the United States in 2018. When surveyed, over 30 percent of adults from Kentucky and Arkansas had not exercised within the preceding 30 days. The national physical inactivity average stood at approximately 26 percent that year.

BMI data is obtained from each systems’ electronic health record and combined into one database managed by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. These data represent individuals who presented for routine care at one of the participating health care organizations, and had a valid height and weight measured. Overweight and obesity prevalence estimates are available for the 7 metro Denver counties, and for rural Prowers County. Estimates generated from the Colorado BMI Monitoring System may be linked with other data sources to identify contributory social and environmental factors.This feature layer represents childhood/youth obesity estimates only.DefinitionsCoverage: The total number of individuals in the BMI Monitoring System with a valid BMI divided by the total estimated population from the American Community Survey Population and Demographic Estimates produced by the US Census Bureau in the specified geographic area and age group.Obesity Children/Youth: BMI is calculated from height and weight and plotted on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) male or female BMI-for-age growth chart to determine a percentile. Obesity is defined as a BMI at the 95th percentile or higher.Obesity Prevalence Estimates: Percentage of individuals with obesity based upon the total number of individuals with obesity in the specified geographic area and age group divided by the total number of valid BMI measurements in the same specified geographic area and age group.

In 2019, it was estimated that around 8.5 percent of deaths worldwide could be attributed to obesity. The countries with the highest share of deaths that could be attributed to obesity included Fiji, the Cook Islands, and the United Arab Emirates. This statistic shows the countries with the highest share of deaths attributable to obesity worldwide in 2019.

In 2022, the prevalence of diagnosed diabetes in the United States among people aged 18 and over amounted to 8.4 percent.

How many people in the United States have diabetes? It was estimated that in 2022, around 24.4 million people in the United States had been diagnosed with diabetes. The number of people living with diabetes has increased over the past few decades, with only five million people living with diabetes in the year 1980. Diabetes in the United States is more common among older adults with around 24 percent of those aged 65 years and older diagnosed with diabetes, compared to 15 percent of those aged 45 to 64 years.

Leading diabetic states

In 2021, the U.S. states with the highest prevalence of diagnosed diabetes were Alabama, Mississippi, and West Virginia, respectively. Just over 17 percent of adults in Alabama had diabetes that year. Roughly 14 percent of adults in Georgia had been diagnosed with diabetes before or during the measured period, putting the state of Georgia in tenth place.

The prevalence of obesity among adults in the United States has nearly doubled in the last three decades with 42 percent of adults obese in 2018. This statistic presents the prevalence of obesity (BMI of 30 kg/m2 and over) among adults in the United States from 1988-1994 to 2017-2018.

As of 2022, in nearly every country in Europe, over half of adults were classed as overweight or obese. The highest rate was recorded in Romania, with ** percent of adults self-reporting as overweight or obese. In both Croatia and the United Kingdom, around ** percent of adults had a BMI of over **. Europe one of the worst affected regions Europe had the second-highest number of obese adults across the WHO regions, only behind the region of the Americas. Over *** million adults aged 20 years were classed as obese in Europe in 2020. The number of obese adults in Europe was forecast to grow to *** million by 2035. Problems also with childhood obesity In 2020, ** million children in Europe were overweight, the highest across all continents. It was forecast with current trends that, by 2035, *** million children would be overweight. A further ** million children across the continent were classed as obese. Children that are overweight or obese are at a higher risk of developing numerous health conditions, such as type 2 diabetes, asthma, and high blood pressure.

Surveys in which U.S. adults report their current weight have shown that the share of those reporting they weigh 200 pounds or more has increased over the past few decades. In 2024, around 28 percent of respondents reported their weight as 200 pounds or more, compared to 15 percent in 1990. However, the same surveys show the share of respondents who report they are overweight has decreased compared to figures from 1990. What percentage of the U.S. population is obese? Obesity is an increasing problem in the United States that is expected to become worse in the coming decades. As of 2023, around one third of adults in the United States were considered obese. Obesity is slightly more prevalent among women in the United States, and rates of obesity differ greatly by region and state. For example, in West Virginia, around 41 percent of adults are obese, compared to 25 percent in Colorado. However, although Colorado is the state with the lowest prevalence of obesity among adults, a quarter of the adult population being obese is still shockingly high. The health impacts of being obese Obesity increases the risk of developing a number of health conditions including high blood pressure, heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and certain types of cancer. It is no coincidence that the states with the highest rates of hypertension are also among the states with the highest prevalence of obesity. West Virginia currently has the third highest rate of hypertension in the U.S. with 45 percent of adults with the condition. It is also no coincidence that as rates of obesity in the United States have increased so have rates of diabetes. As of 2022, around 8.4 percent of adults in the United States had been diagnosed with diabetes, compared to six percent in the year 2000. Obesity can be prevented through a healthy diet and regular exercise, which also increases overall health and longevity.

In 2020, around 2.2 billion adults aged 20 years and older worldwide were considered overweight or obese. This number is expected to increase to around 3.3 billion by the year 2035. This statistic shows the number of adults who were overweight or obese worldwide in 2020 and forecasts for the years 2025, 2030, and 2035.

The prevalence of obesity among adults in England has been generally been trending upwards since 2000. In that year, 21 percent of men and women in England were classified as obese. However, by 2022 this share was 30 percent among women and 28 percent among men. Obesity causing strain on health service As the prevalence of obesity is increasing in England, the number of hospital admissions as a result of obesity has also increased. In the period 2019/20, around eight thousand women and nearly 2.7 thousand men were admitted to hospital. A huge rise from the admission levels fifteen years previously. The highest number of admissions due to obesity were found in the age group 45 to 54 years, with over 3.1 thousand admissions in that age group. Situation in Scotland In Scotland in 2022, the mean Body Mass Index of women was 28.1 and for men it was 27.9. A BMI of over 25 is classed as overweight. While the prevalence of obesity or morbid obesity in Scotland in 2020 was 30 percent among women and 26 percent among men.

Because the Body Mass Index (BMI) changes with age, for children, the measure is placed on a standard gender-specific growth chart provided by the International Obesity Task Force (IOTF). According to this chart, five percent of Belgian children are considered to be obese in 2018. In other words, five percent of children in Belgium have a BMI situated above the 95th percentile for age, gender, and height.

Furthermore, the share of obese children was slowly increasing over the years. In 1997, roughly four percent of children were obese in Belgium, whereas in 2018, over five percent of them suffered from obesity. However, this increase was not steady, the share of obese children slightly decreased in 2008 and 2018.

Evaluating the growth allows the early detection of the risk of becoming overweight or obese, therefore allowing to take preventative measures and supporting the child and his family in a healthier lifestyle, balancing physical activity with an appropriate diet.

In 2026, 42.9 percent of the adult population in Saudi Arabia was expected to be obese. In 2016, 36.8 percent of the adult population in Saudi Arabia was obese.