CDC: U.S. Obesity Levels Leveling

Thirty-four percent of U.S. adults age 20 and over are obese, but a government report said that after 25 years of rising obesity rates, the rate has leveled.

The report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, is the latest analysis based on the National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys.

The report, conducted by CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics, found among men, there was an increase in obesity prevalence between 1999 and 2006. However, there was no significant change in obesity prevalence between 2003 to 2004 and 2005 to 2006 for either men or women.

Approximately 40 percent of men ages 40 to 59 were obese, compared with 28 percent of men ages 20 to 39, and 32 percent of men over the age of 60. Among women, 41 percent ages 40 to 59 were obese compared with 30.5 percent of women ages 20 to 39. Women over the age of 65 and older had obesity prevalence rates comparable with women in the 20 to 39 age group.