CDC: weight, waist size, BMI increased for many U.S. adults

(HealthDay)—From 1999-2000 to 2015-2016, there was an increase in mean weight, waist circumference, and body mass index (BMI) for many U.S. adults, according to the Dec. 20 issue of the National Vital Statistics Reports, a publication from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Cheryl D. Fryar, M.S.P.H., from the National Center for Health Statistics in Hyattsville, Maryland, and colleagues examined trends in mean weight, height, waist circumference, and BMI among U.S. adults from 1999-2000 to 2015-2016. Data were obtained from physical examinations of a sample of adults in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys.

The researchers found that in all age groups, for non-Hispanic white and Mexican-American men and women and for non-Hispanic black women, mean weight, waist circumference, and BMI increased since 1999. Among non-Hispanic black men, mean weight, waist circumference, and BMI increased until 2005 to 2006, after which these numbers plateaued. Height did not change over time, except for a decrease in crude estimates for all women, a decrease in 40- to 59-year-old men and women, and an increase in crude and age-adjusted estimates among men followed by a decrease after 2003 to 2004. Non-Hispanic Asian men and women did not have significant trends in any of the four body measures.

"The current report provides updated data on trends in weight, height, waist circumference, and BMI from 1999-2000 through 2015-2016, showing an increase of over 8 pounds in men and 7 pounds in women over this time period and overall, no increase in height," the authors write.

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