NCHS Data Briefs

Data Brief, No. 313. Attempts to Lose Weight Among Adults in the United States, 2013–2016.

This data brief describes the percentage of U.S. adults who tried to lose weight in the past year by sex, age, race and Hispanic origin, family income, and weight status. In 2013–2016, almost one-half of U.S. adults tried to lose weight within the last year. A higher percentage of younger adults aged 20–39 and middle-aged adults aged 40–59 tried to lose weight, compared with older adults aged 60 and older. A higher percentage of women than men tried to lose weight, overall and within each age group. Patterns by race and Hispanic origin differed between men and women. Among women, a lower percentage of non-Hispanic Asian women tried to lose weight, compared with all other race and Hispanic-origin groups. Among men, a lower percentage of non-Hispanic black men tried to lose weight than did non-Hispanic white men or Hispanic men. The percentage of adults who tried to lose weight increased with family income and with weight status. Among adults who tried to lose weight, the most commonly reported ways were exercising (62.9%) and eating less food (62.9%). A majority of adults who tried to lose weight reported using two or more methods (88.3%). Data collected in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) from 2013–2016 were used for these analyses.

Learn More >>