JAMA Netw Open

Youth overweight and obesity remain widespread, 2024 national data show

February 11, 2026

A cross-sectional analysis of 2024 electronic health records from more than 6 million youths in the PCORnet network found that overweight and obesity remained common across U.S. age groups. Among youths aged 2 to 19 years, 19.8% had obesity. Excess weight increased with age: 26.9% of children ages 2 to 5 years had overweight or obesity, rising to 38.5% in adolescents and young adults. Severe obesity affected 9.2% of adolescents. Prevalence varied across racial and ethnic subgroups; among adolescents, healthy weight ranged from 47.3% to 59.3% across groups. Findings were broadly consistent with prior national estimates and highlighted uneven distribution of excess adiposity.

Clinical takeaway: Monitor weight trends across age and demographic groups to support early identification of excess adiposity.

Source:

Heerman WJ, et al. (2026, February 10). JAMA Netw Open. Prevalence of youth overweight, obesity, and severe obesity. https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2844882