United States · teens
What high-school students told the CDC
Every two years, the Youth Risk Behavior Survey asks students in grades 9–12 across the US about their health — including their height and weight.
13.7%
of high-school students had obesity (2013)
10.8% in 1999
Source: CDC YRBS (our calculation)
16.6%
of boys (2013)
Source: CDC YRBS (our calculation)
10.8%
of girls (2013)
Source: CDC YRBS (our calculation)
High-school students with obesity, 1999–2013
What this meansAll students: 10.8% in 1999, 13.7% in 2013. Boys had a higher rate than girls in every survey year.
- All
- Boys
- Girls
Show the numbers as a table
| Year | All students | Boys | Girls | Overweight (not obesity) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 10.8% | 13.8% | 7.7% | 14.4% |
| 2001 | 10.5% | 14.2% | 6.9% | 13.6% |
| 2003 | 12.1% | 15.7% | 8.3% | 14.8% |
| 2005 | 13.1% | 16.0% | 10.0% | 15.7% |
| 2007 | 13.0% | 16.3% | 9.6% | 15.8% |
| 2009 | 12.0% | 15.3% | 8.3% | 15.8% |
| 2011 | 13.0% | 16.1% | 9.8% | 15.2% |
| 2013 | 13.7% | 16.6% | 10.8% | 16.6% |
Obesity = BMI at or above the 95th percentile on CDC growth charts, from self-reported height and weight. Survey-weighted; shaded band = 95% confidence interval.
Sources: Youth Risk Behavior Survey (national, high school); Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance — United States, 2013 (benchmark); CDC 2000 BMI-for-age growth chart LMS parameters.
Self-reported heights and weights usually give lower obesity figures than measuring people. For measured numbers, see children & teens on the US page. Survey files after 2013 were not part of the data used for this site.
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