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.

aOne or more of the following conditions was reported at study entry: prevalent cancer (except non melanoma skin), heart disease, stroke, respiratory disease (chronic bronchitis, emphysema, asthma), currently sick, or weight loss of ≥10 lbs. in past year.bRate per 100,000 standardized to the age-distribution of the CPS-II men.cCox proportional hazards model, adjusted for age, race, education, physical activity, alcohol use, marital status, aspirin use, fat consumption, and vegetable consumptiondNone of the conditions listed in footnote(a) were reported.Rates and relative risks of death from any cause among men according to BMI, smoking, prevalent disease status and race, CPS-II 1982-2010.

aRate per 100,000 standardized to the age-distribution of the CPS-II men/women.bCox proportional hazards model, adjusted for age, race, education, physical activity, alcohol use, marital status, aspirin use, fat consumption, vegetable consumption, and postmenopausal estrogen use (women).Relative risk of death from cardiovascular, cancer, or other causes according to BMI among men and women who are never smokers without prevalent disease, CPS-II 1982–2010.

The share of the population with overweight in Canada was forecast to continuously increase between 2024 and 2029 by in total 1.6 percentage points. After the fifteenth consecutive increasing year, the overweight population share is estimated to reach 74.45 percent and therefore a new peak in 2029. Notably, the share of the population with overweight of was continuously increasing over the past years.Overweight is defined as a body mass index (BMI) of more than 25.The shown data are an excerpt of Statista's Key Market Indicators (KMI). The KMI are a collection of primary and secondary indicators on the macro-economic, demographic and technological environment in up to 150 countries and regions worldwide. All indicators are sourced from international and national statistical offices, trade associations and the trade press and they are processed to generate comparable data sets (see supplementary notes under details for more information).Find more key insights for the share of the population with overweight in countries like Mexico and United States.