Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2022 Dec 16;12(12):e065425.
doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2022-065425.

Trends in body mass index, overweight and obesity among adults in the USA, the NHANES from 2003 to 2018: a repeat cross-sectional survey

Mingxi Li  1 , Weijun Gong  1 , Shidong Wang  2 , Zhe Li  3
Affiliations

Trends in body mass index, overweight and obesity among adults in the USA, the NHANES from 2003 to 2018: a repeat cross-sectional survey

Mingxi Li et al. BMJ Open. .

Abstract

Objectives: To analyse detailed trends in adult obesity from 2003 to 2018 in the USA, and provide the latest national estimates of adult obesity in 2017-2018.

Design, setting and participants: Analysis of data, including measured height and weight, obtained from 42 266 adults aged ≥20 years from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, a cross-sectional, nationally representative sample of the US population.

Exposure: Survey period.

Primary outcome measures: The mean body mass index (BMI) and prevalence of overweight and obesity.

Results: In 2017-2018, the prevalence of overweight (including obesity, BMI ≥25 kg/m2) and obesity (BMI ≥30 kg/m2) was 73.8% (95% CI 71.1% to 76.4%) and 42.8% (95% CI 39.5% to 46.1%), respectively. From 2003 to 2018, a significant increase in the prevalence of overweight (including obesity, overall adjusted OR for 2017-2018 vs 2003-2004, 1.08 (95% CI 1.04 to 1.13) and obesity (overall adjusted OR for 2017-2018 vs 2003-2004, 1.15 (95% CI 1.10 to 1.21) was found among American adults. However, annual changes in mean BMI and the prevalence of overweight and obesity did not differ significantly before and after 2009-2010. The prevalence of overweight and obesity varied significantly by age, sex, race, education, daily total energy intake, economic conditions and physical activity status (all p<0.05).

Conclusions: Although the prevalence of adult obesity continues to rise, there have been no significant changes in the annual growth of adult obesity prevalence between 2003-2004 and 2017-2018. In 2017-2018, the prevalence of obesity was 42.8%, which equates to 76 million American adults at risk for serious and costly chronic conditions. The prevalence of obesity was higher among older adults (aged 60-69 years), females, non-Hispanic blacks, and those who did not graduate college, were physically inactive, reported lower daily total energy intake and had poor economic status.

Keywords: EPIDEMIOLOGY; General endocrinology; PUBLIC HEALTH.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Competing interests: None declared.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Mean BMI by age (A), poverty income ratio (B), education (C) and race (D) group from 2003 through 2018.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Mean BMI by sex (A), physical activity status (B)group and prevalence of overweight (C) and obesity (D) from 2003 through 2018.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Poirier P, Giles TD, Bray GA, et al. . Obesity and cardiovascular disease: pathophysiology, evaluation, and effect of weight loss: an update of the 1997 American heart association scientific statement on obesity and heart disease from the obesity Committee of the Council on nutrition, physical activity, and metabolism. Circulation 2006;113:898–918. 10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.106.171016 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Petrelli F, Cortellini A, Indini A, et al. . Association of obesity with survival outcomes in patients with cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis. JAMA Netw Open 2021;4:e213520. 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2021.3520 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Islami F, Goding Sauer A, Gapstur SM, et al. . Proportion of cancer cases attributable to excess body weight by US state, 2011-2015. JAMA Oncol 2019;5:384–92. 10.1001/jamaoncol.2018.5639 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Piché M-E, Tchernof A, Després J-P. Obesity phenotypes, diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases. Circ Res 2020;126:1477–500. 10.1161/CIRCRESAHA.120.316101 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Emerging Risk Factors Collaboration, Wormser D, Kaptoge S, et al. . Separate and combined associations of body-mass index and abdominal adiposity with cardiovascular disease: collaborative analysis of 58 prospective studies. Lancet 2011;377:1085–95. 10.1016/S0140-6736(11)60105-0 - DOI - PMC - PubMed