Obesity Rates: Latest Figures for England, the US and the World

Obesity rates at a glance

In England, obesity was most common in middle and older age: 18% among adults aged 16 to 24, peaking at between 35% and 36% among those aged 55 to 74 in 2024 (NHS England). In the US, obesity was higher in adults aged 40–59 than in younger or older groups, and lower in adults with a bachelor’s degree or more (CDC).

Children and teenagers

England’s National Child Measurement Programme measured over 1.1 million children in 2024 to 2025. 10.5% of Reception children and 22.2% of Year 6 children were living with obesity; most children (75.4% in Reception and 62.2% in Year 6) were a healthy weight. Excluding the pandemic peak, Reception obesity was the highest since measurements began in 2006 to 2007 (GOV.UK).

Worldwide, the WHO estimates that adolescent obesity has quadrupled since 1990, and that 35 million children under 5 were overweight in 2024 (WHO).

Why figures from different places don’t line up

• Different ages: England’s adult survey covers ages 16+, the US brief ages 20+, and WHO adults 18+.
• Different years: surveys run on different cycles; the US figure covers two years combined.
• Children are measured differently: child BMI is compared with growth references by age and sex. England’s NCMP uses population-monitoring cut-offs that are lower than the clinical ones used for individual children (OHID).
• Estimates vs measurements: national surveys measure a sample of people, so each figure has a margin of uncertainty; the WHO’s global numbers are estimates.

So compare trends within one source over time rather than ranking countries from different surveys.

Why obesity rates rose

The WHO describes obesity as driven by complex interactions between environmental, social, biological and behavioural factors, with changes in diets, activity patterns and social norms creating environments that promote weight gain. Worldwide adult obesity has more than doubled since 1990 (WHO).

Two related pages go further: how genes and environment interact, and how food marketing and promotions shape what we buy, including the UK rules introduced in 2025 and 2026.