Fast Facts on Obesity

Overweight Americans:

• Nearly two-thirds of U.S. adults (over age 20) are overweight (or have a body mass index (BMI) of greater than 25) [1]:

All adults: 129.6 million (64.5 percent)
Women: 64.5 million (61.9 percent)
Men: 65.1 million (67.2 percent)

• Approximately 15.3 percent of children (ages 6-11) were overweight in 2000. [1]


• Approximately 15.5 percent of adolescents (ages 12-19) were overweight in 2000. [1]

• Nearly one-third of U.S. adults are obese (or have a BMI of greater than 30): [1]

All adults: 61.3 million (30.5 percent)
Women: 34.7 million (33.4 percent)
Men: 26.6 million (27.5 percent)

• The prevalence of obesity among American adults from 1960 to 2000 more than doubled, from 13.3 percent to 30.9 percent. [2]
• In 1991, only four states had obesity rates of 15 percent or higher. In 2000, every state except Colorado had obesity rates of 15 percent or more. [3]

• Approximately 300,000 adult deaths in the United States each year are attributable to unhealthy dietary habits and physical inactivity or sedentary behavior. [3]


• An estimated 70 percent of diabetes risk in the U.S. can be attributed to excess weight. [4]


• In a 14-year prospective study, middle-aged overweight women had 50 percent increase in risk of nonfatal or fatal coronary heart disease, and overweight men aged 40 to 65 years had a 72 percent increased risk. [5]


• A recent study found that people whose BMI was 40 or more had death rates from cancer that were 52 percent higher for men and 62 percent higher for women than rates for normal-weight men and women. [6]

Health Costs of Obesity:

• A recent study estimated annual medical spending due to overweight and obesity to be as much as $92.6 billion in 2002 (9.1 percent of U.S. health expenditures). [7]

Sources:
[1] Journal of the American Medical Association
[2] International Journal of Obesity
[3] Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
[4] National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases
[5]Circulation
[6] New England Journal of Medicine
[7] Health Affairs Web Exclusive.