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Facts and Figures
Among persons aged 6-19, an estimated 15%, or 9 million youths, are overweight. In the past 3 decades, the numbers have
more than tripled for children aged 6-11 (from 4% in 1971-74 to 15% in 1999-2000) and doubled for adolescents aged 12-19 (from
6% to 15%).
In addition to the 15% of youths who are overweight, data suggest that another 15% are at risk of becoming overweight
(BMI between the 85th and 95th percentiles).
Excess weight can exert a profound and immediate effect on physical, mental, emotional, and social development.
Compared with normal-weight youths, overweight children and adolescents suffer disproportionately from such chronic conditions
as diabetes, asthma, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, atherosclerosis, bone/joint problems, and sleep apnea.
Overweight kids experience intense social stigmatization. Particularly among adolescent Caucasian girls, Hispanic girls,
and boys of all races, childhood overweight is associated with lower self-esteem, a tendency to withdraw from others, increased
loneliness, sadness, and nervousness, and increased use of alcohol and tobacco.
Severely overweight children are more than 5 times as likely as their healthy counterparts to have a lower health-related
quality of life, i.e., their ability to move around, play sports, and perform in school, as well as their levels of fear and
sadness, and the quality of their relationships with peers.
Overweight youths have an estimated 70-80% chance of becoming obese adults. People who suffer the burdens of excess weight
during childhood are at continued and elevated risk for chronic diseases and premature death during adulthood. Obesity contributes
to 4 of the 10 leading causes of death among U.S. adults: coronary heart disease, stroke, Type 2 diabetes, and cancer.
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