Obesity Rates in Adults
Which Groups of Adults Have the Highest Rate of Obesity?
Using the definition of obesity as a BMI of 30+, 26 percent of all adult women are obese, while 20.6 percent of adult men are obese.
Among women, obesity rates are higher among minority women.
39 percent of black women and 36.1 percent of Hispanic women are obese.
Adults aged 55-64 years have the greatest percentage of obesity, for both men (27.2 percent) and women (33.7 percent).
In which adults do we see the greatest increase in obesity?
Between 1991 and 2000, the greatest increase in obesity has been found in the following groups:
- 18 to 29-year-olds
- Those with some college education
- Hispanics
- Those living in the South