Geographic Breakdown

The Domestic Impact
While obesity rates have increased in adults nationwide, the obesity epidemic has increased more dramatically in specific areas of the country. The following chart depicts a regional breakdown of the obesity epidemic among people in the U.S. The prevalence of overweight and obesity is highest overall in the Southern region of the country.

America’s Obesity Epidemic
In 1991, only four of 45 states participating in the CDC’s Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System had obesity prevalence rates of 15 to 19 percent and none had obesity prevalence rates greater than 20 percent. By the year 2000, all of the 50 states had obesity prevalence rates of 15 percent or greater, with 35 of the 50 states having obesity prevalence rates as high as 20 percent or greater.

In 2001:

• 20 states had obesity prevalence rates of 15–19 percent
• 29 states had obesity prevalence rates of 20–24 percent
• One state had an obesity prevalence rate of more than 25 percent

The prevalence of obese individuals in the U.S. increased to 20.9 percent in 2001, a 5.6 percent increase in one year and a 74 percent increase since 1991. The following chart outlines the growing obesity epidemic by state.

*Based on age-adjusted prevalence of obesity among U.S. adults, age 20 years or over.

International Impact of Obesity – How Does the U.S. Compare?
The impact of obesity on populations is felt globally. In barely a decade, the estimated number for obesity in adults worldwide has skyrocketed from 200 million to more than 300 million. Currently, obesity levels range from below five percent in China, Japan and certain African nations, to over 75 percent in urban Samoa. Since 1980, obesity rates have risen three-fold or more in some areas of North America, the United Kingdom, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, the Pacific Islands and Australia⁸².

Although the direct economic impact associated with the obesity epidemic (i.e., medical care and lost wages) is slightly lower in other industrialized countries than in the U.S., the obesity epidemic still has a considerable impact on each nations’ economy. The increasing industrialization, urbanization and mechanization occurring globally directly correlates with changes in diet and behavior. Diets, for instance, are becoming richer in fat, lifestyles are becoming more sedentary, and activity levels have dropped off⁸³.

The obesity of populations worldwide will have an important impact on the global incidence of obesity-related complications and conditions⁸⁴. The chart on the following page illustrates the global impact of obesity by a country’s level of development.

Additional resources can be found on the Web site of the World Health Organization, http://www.who.int/en/.