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Overweight Prevalence

Overweight is a serious health concern for children and adolescents. Data from two NHANES surveys (1976–1980 and 2003–2004) show that the prevalence of overweight is increasing: for children aged 2–5 years, prevalence increased from 5.0% to 13.9%; for those aged 6–11 years, prevalence increased from 6.5% to 18.8%; and for those aged 12–19 years, prevalence increased from 5.0% to 17.4%.^{1, 8}

Healthy People 2010 identified overweight and obesity as 1 of 10 leading health indicators and called for a reduction in the proportion of children and adolescents who are overweight or obese⁹, but the United States has made little progress toward the target goal.

Progress toward reducing the national prevalence of overweight and obesity is monitored using data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). The most recent NHANES data (2003–2004) showed that for children aged 6 –11 years and 12–19 years, the prevalence of overweight was 18.8% and 17.4% respectively.¹ These prevalence figures are more than three times the target prevalence of 5% set in Healthy People 2010.

Trends in Childhood Overweight

The following graphs show trends in childhood overweight based on NHANES data for various age groups, beginning with NHANES I (1971–1974) and ending with NHANES 2003–2004 (the most recently available published data).

Data from NHANES I (1971–1974) to NHANES 2003–2004 show increases in overweight among all age groups:

• Among preschool-aged children, aged 2–5 years, the prevalence of overweight increased from 5.0% to 13.9%.^{8, 46}
• Among school-aged children, aged 6–11 years, the prevalence of overweight increased from 4.0% to 18.8%.^{8, 46}
• Among school-aged adolescents, aged 12–19 years, the prevalence of overweight increased from 6.1% to 17.4%.^{8, 46}

 

Overweight among Racial/Ethnic Groups

Although overweight has increased for all children and adolescents over time, NHANES data indicate disparities among racial/ethnic groups. The following graphs compare the prevalence for racial/ethnic groups of adolescent boys and girls aged 12 through 19 years.

Racial/Ethnic Comparison: Boys Aged 12–19 Years
The most recent NHANES data (2003 - 2004) showed that for boys, aged 12–19 years:

• The prevalence rate of overweight was slightly higher among adolescent non-Hispanic white boys (19.1%) than among non-Hispanic black boys (18.5%) and Mexican American boys (18.3%).⁴⁶

Data from NHANES III (1988 - 1994) through NHANES 2003–2004 showed that adolescent non-Hispanic white and black boys experienced larger increases in the prevalence of overweight (7.5% and 7.8% respectively) compared to the increase among Mexican American boys (4.2%).

• Among non-Hispanic white boys, the prevalence of overweight increased from 11.6% to 19.1%.
• Among non-Hispanic black boys, the prevalence of overweight increased from 10.7% to 18.5%.
• Among Mexican American boys, the prevalence of overweight increased from 14.1% to 18.3%.

 

Racial/Ethnic Comparison: Girls Aged 12–19 Years
The most recent NHANES data (2003 - 2004) showed that for girls, aged 12–19 years:

• Non-Hispanic black girls had the highest prevalence of overweight (25.4%) compared to that of non-Hispanic white (15.4%) and Mexican American (14.1%) girls.⁴⁶

Data from NHANES III (1988 - 1994) through NHANES 2003–2004 showed that non-Hispanic black adolescent girls experienced the largest increase in the prevalence of overweight (12.2%) compared to non-Hispanic white adolescent (8.0%) and Mexican American adolescent (4.9%) girls.

• Among non-Hispanic white girls, the prevalence of overweight increased from 7.4% to 15.4%.
• Among non-Hispanic black girls, the prevalence of overweight increased from 13.2% to 25.4%.
• Among Mexican American girls, the prevalence of overweight increased from 9.2% to 14.1%.

 

Tips for Parents
What can you do as a parent or guardian to help prevent childhood overweight? We have some ideas in our Healthy Weight section.

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