RATES OF OBESITY AND OVERWEIGHT REMAIN HIGH
Obesity is a chronic condition that increases risk for other health problems and premature death.[1] While genetics contributes significantly to weight status, an active lifestyle and healthy eating habits can reduce many of the risks associated with obesity.[2] However, an environment that does not favor healthy eating or physical activity, as well as physiological and psychosocial factors, make these lifestyle changes difficult. The emergence of pharmaceutical interventions may offer needed leverage to reduce obesity prevalence and the burden of associated diseases.[3] This indicator measures the weight status of adults and children in San Bernardino County and California.
TREND
In 2024, 32.3% of adults in San Bernardino County were overweight and 36.5% were obese. Statewide, the proportion of adults who are overweight (33.0%) is slightly higher than in San Bernardino County, while the statewide rate of obesity (27.8%) is approximately nine percentage points lower than the San Bernardino County rate. In the past 10 years, from 2015 to 2024, there has been an increase in the proportion of San Bernardino County adults with obesity, while the percentage of overweight adults appears to be trending downward. Statewide there has been little change in rates of obesity and overweight.
IN RECENT YEARS, PROPORTION OF OBESE ADULTS GREATER THAN OVERWEIGHT ADULTS
Percentage of Overweight or Obese Adults in San Bernardino County and California, 2015-2024
In 2024, an estimated 19.8% of San Bernardino County children under age 18 were overweight for their age.[4] Statewide, an estimated 15.5% of children were overweight in 2024.
1-IN-5 SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY CHILDREN MAY BE OVERWEIGHT FOR THEIR AGE
Percentage of Children Considered Overweight for their Age in San Bernardino County and California, 2021-2024
[1] Abdelaalm M, Le Roux CW, Docherty NG. (2017) Morbidity and mortality associated with obesity. Annals of Translational Medicine.
[2] Kim MS, Shim I, Fahed AC, Natarajan P, et. al. (2024) Association of genetic risk, lifestyle and their interaction with obesity and obesity-related morbidities. Cell Metabolism.
[3] Zhang Y, Liu X, Wang C, Li Y, Zhao Y, Chen J. (2024). Effects of GLP-1 receptor agonists on cardiovascular events in overweight or obese patients without diabetes: A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Frontiers in Cardiovascular Medicine
[4] Due in part to the year-to-year percent overweight falling with the margins of error, there is no significant trend – either increasing or decreasing – that can be decerned over the past four years of data.