In 2023, the United States saw a slight decrease in obesity prevalence among adults, according to research findings published Dec. 13 in JAMA.
Amid projections of increasing obesity rates over the next decade, researchers from Boston Children's Hospital and Optum Life Sciences analyzed body mass index data from 2013 to 2023. The dataset included nearly 48 million BMI measurements from 16.7 million nonpregnant adults.
Between 2013 and 2022, mean population BMI and obesity rates rose annually. Both figures slightly declined in 2023, the study found.
The researchers suggested this change could be due to weight loss GLP-1s such as semaglutide (Wegovy) and "pandemic-associated demographic and behavior changes."
"While obesity remains a considerable public health concern," the researchers said, "the observed reductions in obesity prevalence suggest an encouraging reversal from long-standing prior increases."