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Withings Health Observatory

Thanks to the power of connected devices, Withings is able to provide a national health observatory accessible to the general public. Using real-time data, this tool allows us to track the prevalence of key risk factors linked to lifestyle: sedentary behavior, overweight and obesity, and high blood pressure.

The observatory invites you to discover exclusive data and information gathered from the Withings community. Which American states are most affected by sedentary behaviors or by overweight and obesity? Are all age groups affected? Check out the informative graphs and charts of the Withings Health Observatory to learn more about health behaviors and different lifestyles across the US.

The observatory of weight and body mass

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), more than one billion adults worldwide are overweight or obese. The WHO estimates that overweight and obesity are responsible for 44% of diabetes cases, 23% of instances of ischemic heart disease and 7 to 41% of certain cancers. Excess weight is therefore one of the five main mortality causes, along with high blood pressure, tobacco use, hyperglycemia and a lack of physical inactivity1.

In this context, it is necessary to increase general awareness about this subject. To contribute to this objective, Withings has created a real-time observatory of the body mass index (BMI) of Americans.

What is overweight and obesity?

Overweight and obesity are defined by an excess accumulation of fat in the body, due to an imbalance between caloric intake and energy expenditure. This excess concentration of body fat is associated with a number of cardiovascular problems, cancers, and chronic diseases such as diabetes.

What is the BMI?

The body mass index (BMI) is a body fat measurement defined as the ratio between a person's weight and the square of his or her height, generally expressed in kg/m2. BMI is the most widely used measure for determining whether a given population suffers from overweight and obesity, as the same thresholds may be used for all adults, men or women.

In our dashboards, we follow the WHO classification for BMI levels. Therefore, adults with a BMI equal or superior to 25 kg/m2 are considered overweight or obese. For more details about the definitions we use, please visit our section on data protection policies and definitions used.

1. World Health Organization. Global health risks - Mortality and burden of disease attributable to selected major risks. 2009.

Scroll down to discover the statistics on
overweight and obesity

How do overweight and obesity rates differ across US states*?

Analyze the latest figures for the prevalence of overweight and obesity in US states*. Select a state to see its detailed profile.

The latest data from the Withings community shows that, for the selected category, New York is the state where people are the fittest. On the contrary, Texas is the state with the highest rate of overweight and obesity. Follow the evolution of these tendencies by regularly visiting the observatory.

* Anonymized and aggregated data, built on the basis of a random sample of 100000+ adult users in the US. See below for our data protection policies and definitions used.
Data updated monthly, on a 12-month moving window. Last update:07/01/2020.

Prevalence of overweight and obesity

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%
of overweight or obese adults

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Breakdown by BMI classes,
in percentage of subjects

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Prevalence of overweight and obesity
by age class

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BMI distribution, in percentage of subjects

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Overview of BMI levels in the United States*

Discover the latest statistics on BMI (body mass index) levels in the United States* expressed through: distribution, per age, and prevalence of overweight and obesity.


Breakdown by BMI classes,
in percentage of subjects

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Prevalence of overweight and obesity
by age class

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BMI distribution, in percentage of subjects

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For the selected category, the latest figures from the Withings community show an average BMI of 25 kg/m2, and an overweight and obesity rate of 46% in the US. Among the 20 to 60 year old population, it is the 50-60 year olds that display the highest overweight and obesity rate, with 58%. Follow the real-time evolution of these indicators by regularly visiting the observatory.

* Anonymized and aggregated data, built on the basis of a random sample of 100000+ adult users in the US. See below for our data protection policies and definitions used.
Data updated monthly, on a 12-month moving window. Last update:07/01/2020.

Overweight and obesity trends in the United States*

What is the evolution of overweight and obesity rates in the United States*? Compare the variations of these rates since 2010 for men and women, and for different age groups.

For the selected category, we observe between 2010 and2022 an absolute variation of 1% of the overweight and obesity rate in the US.


Prevalence of overweight and obesity by year

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* Anonymized and aggregated data, built on the basis of a random sample of 100000+ adult Withings users in the US. See below for our data protection policies and definitions used.

Weight progression among Withings users

See how the BMI of overweight and obese subjects progresses on average during the first two years of weight tracking.


Evolution of the BMI of overweight and obese subjects,
in percentage of the BMI registered in the first month of weight tracking

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For the selected category, there is a -2.1% variation in the BMI over the period of two years. Come back regularly to see the evolution of this trend.

* Anonymized and aggregated data, built on the basis of a random sample of 100000+ adult Withings users in overweight or obesity conditions. The BMI (body mass index) class refers to the BMI at the first month of weight tracking. See below for our data protection policies and definitions used.
Global data, updated monthly. Last update:07/01/2020.

What is the relation between weight and other vital indicators?
The blood pressure level.

Find out how BMI and blood pressure levels are correlated.

The class Morbid obesity is the one with the highest rate of individuals showing high blood pressure levels, 48.6%.

Percentage of subjects with high blood pressure, by BMI class

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* Anonymized and aggregated data, built on the basis of a random sample of 100000+ Withings users. See below for our data protection policies and definitions used.
Global data, updated monthly. Last update:07/01/2020.

What is the relation between weight and other vital indicators?
The physical activity level.

Find out how BMI and physical activity levels are correlated.

The class Morbid obesity is the one with the highest rate of individuals showing a sedentary behavior, 46.4%.

Percentage of subjects displaying a sedentary behavior, by BMI class

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* Anonymized and aggregated data, built on the basis of a random sample of 100000+ Withings users. See below for our data protection policies and definitions used.
Global data, updated monthly. Last update:07/01/2020.

What is the relation between weight and other vital indicators?
The sleep duration.

Find out how BMI and sleep are correlated.

The class Morbid obesity is the one with the highest rate of sleep deprived individuals, 46.4%.

Percentage of sleep deprived subjects, by BMI class

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* Anonymized and aggregated data, built on the basis of a random sample of 100000+ Withings users. See below for our data protection policies and definitions used.
Global data, updated monthly. Last update:07/01/2020.

Did you know?

  • Worldwide, the number of people affected by overweight and obesity has doubled since 1980. In 2008, this figure reached 1.4 billion people1


  • 44% of diabetes cases, 23% of coronary heart diseases, and 7 to 41% of certain cancers are attributable to overweight and obesity2


  • The CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) estimates that around $147 billion of medical costs are associated with obesity in the United States3


  • Weight loss reduces the blood pressure as well as triglycerides levels in the blood, and increases the HDL ("good cholesterol"), in subjects affected by obesity4


  • Excess abdominal fat is particularly harmful for health, as fatty abdominal tissues decrease insulin sensitivity. Developing an insulin resistance may cause type 2 diabetes


  • A study estimates at 13% increased risk for women and a 17% increased risk for men to suffer from early mortality due to a 5 cm gain in waist circumference5


  • Physical activity is an effective way of fighting against obesity: according to a clinical study, by increasing daily walking distances by 1 km, the risk of obesity would decrease by 5%6

1. World Health Organization. Obesity and overweight - Fact sheet No 311. 2014.
2. World Health Organization. Global health risks - Mortality and burden of disease attributable to selected major risks. 2009.
3. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. What causes overweight and obesity? 2012.
4. National Institutes of Health Clinical Guidelines on the Identification, Evaluation, and Treatment of Overweight and Obesity in Adults. 1998.
5. Pischon T et al. General and Abdominal Adiposity and Risk of Death in Europe. N Engl J Med, 359:2105-20, 2008.
6. Frank LD et al. Obesity relationships with community design, physical activity, and time spent in cars. Am J Prev Med, 27(2):87-96, 2004.

Data protection policies

Withings guarantees the confidentiality of personal data and protects the privacy of all its users. Our ethical commitments relative to the confidentiality of data are specified in detail in our privacy policy.

All data used by the Withings Health Observatory are permanently anonymized and aggregated, built upon a pool of users having accepted the terms and conditions of use of Withings services.

In order to avoid reidentification of individual data, the data aggregation satisfies a minimum threshold relative to the size of each aggregate: if the number of units in each studied class is inferior to the minimum threshold, the corresponding data is excluded and replaced by "N/A". 0 is displayed as a valid numerical data.

Definitions

Physical activity level classes used are: Sedentary - number of daily steps < 4000 ; A bit active - 4000 ≤ number of daily steps < 7000 ; Moderately active - 7000 ≤ number of daily steps < 10000 ; Active - number of daily steps ≥ 10000.

BMI (Body Mass Index) classes used are those defined by the World Health Organization: Underweight - BMI < 18.5 kg/m2 ; Normal - 18.5 ≤ BMI < 25 kg/m2 ; Overweight - 25 ≤ BMI < 30 kg/m2 ; Moderate obesity - 30 ≤ BMI < 35 kg/m2 ; Severe obesity - 40 ≤ BMI < 40 kg/m2 ; Morbid obesity - BMI ≥ 40 kg/m2. Therefore, the prevalence of overweight and obesity corresponds to the percentage of subjects with a BMI greater than or equal to 25 kg/m2.

Blood pressure classes used are those defined by the American Heart Association: Hypotension - systolic pressure < 90 mmHg / diastolic pressure < 60 mmHg ; Normal - 90 ≤ systolic pressure < 120 mmHg / 60 ≤ diastolic pressure < 80 mmHg ; Prehypertension - 120 ≤ systolic pressure < 140 mmHg / 80 ≤ diastolic pressure < 90 mmHg ; Hypertension - systolic pressure ≥ 140 mmHg / diastolic pressure ≥ 90 mmHg.