New Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) population data from 2023 show that in 23 states more than one in three adults (35%) is obese. Before 2013, no state had an adult obesity prevalence at or above 35%. Currently, at least one in five adults (20%) in each U.S. state is living with obesity.
The 23 states with the highest adult obesity rates (35% or higher) include: Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Delaware, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, West Virginia, and Wisconsin. Guam and Puerto Rico also had an obesity rate of at least 35%. State-based adult obesity prevalence by race, ethnicity, and location uses self-reported height and weight data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS).
Obesity impacts some groups more than others. There are notable differences by race and ethnicity, as shown by combined BRFSS data from 2021–2023.
- Asian adults do not have an obesity prevalence at or above 35% in any state (among 37 states, 1 territory, and DC).
- In 16 states, White adults have an obesity prevalence at or above 35% (among 47 states, 2 territories, and DC).
- In 30 states, American Indian or Alaska Native adults have an obesity prevalence at or above 35% (among 44 states).
- In 34 states, Hispanic adults have an obesity prevalence at or above 35% (among 47 states, 3 territories, and DC).
- In 38 states, Black adults have an obesity prevalence at or above 35% (among 46 states, 1 territory, and DC).
