In the United States, non-Hispanic Black adults have the highest obesity prevalence of any racial or ethnic group. National health survey data from 2017–2018 put the rate at 49.6%, meaning nearly half of Black adults met the clinical threshold for obesity (a BMI of 30 or higher). Hispanic adults followed at 44.8%, non-Hispanic white adults at 42.2%, and non-Hispanic Asian adults at 17.4%.
More recent data from the CDC’s 2024 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System shows the same ranking, though with somewhat different numbers because of a different survey method: 41.8% for Black adults, 36.0% for Hispanic adults, and 32.4% for white adults nationally.
How the Numbers Break Down
Regardless of which federal dataset you look at, the pattern is consistent. Black and Hispanic Americans carry a disproportionate burden of obesity compared to white and Asian Americans. The gap between Black and white adults ranges from about 7 to 10 percentage points depending on the survey cycle, and the gap between Black and Asian adults is roughly 25 to 30 points.
Children show the same pattern. Among kids and adolescents (data from 2017 through early 2020), obesity prevalence was 26.2% for Hispanic children, 24.8% for Black children, 16.6% for white children, and 9.0% for Asian children. Hispanic children slightly edge out Black children in childhood obesity, a reversal of the adult ranking that suggests different factors may be at work at different life stages.
Why BMI Thresholds Don’t Tell the Whole Story
These statistics all use the standard BMI cutoff of 30 for obesity, but that single number doesn’t carry the same health meaning across all populations. Research published through the American College of Cardiology found that the diabetes risk a white person faces at a BMI of 30 kicks in at a BMI of just 28.1 for Black adults, 26.9 for Chinese adults, and 23.9 for South Asian adults. In other words, South Asian individuals can face obesity-level metabolic risk at a weight that would be classified as “normal” by standard charts.
This happens partly because different populations store fat differently. South Asian people, for example, tend to accumulate more fat around internal organs (visceral fat) even at lower overall body weights, which drives up risk for diabetes and heart disease. If health agencies adopted race-specific BMI cutoffs, obesity prevalence among Asian Americans would likely jump significantly, while the overall ranking might shift as well. The 17.4% figure for Asian adults almost certainly understates the proportion facing obesity-related health risks.
What Drives the Disparities
The gap between racial groups is not primarily genetic. It tracks closely with socioeconomic conditions that differ sharply along racial lines in the U.S. The CDC identifies several overlapping factors: lower high school graduation rates, higher unemployment, greater food insecurity, easier access to low-quality foods, less access to safe and convenient places for physical activity, targeted marketing of unhealthy foods, and poorer access to healthcare.
Neighborhood environment plays a measurable role. A study of neighborhoods in San Diego, Seattle, and Baltimore found that low-income areas and areas with higher proportions of racial and ethnic minorities consistently had worse walkability, more litter, more graffiti, and fewer features that encourage outdoor activity. These are the kinds of environmental factors that compound over years and generations, making it harder to maintain a healthy weight even with the same level of personal motivation.
Food access is another piece. Communities with high concentrations of Black and Hispanic residents are more likely to be “food deserts,” areas where grocery stores with fresh produce are scarce but fast food and convenience stores are plentiful. When the nearest affordable option for dinner is a drive-through rather than a produce aisle, dietary patterns shift in predictable ways.
Health Consequences Are Not Evenly Distributed
Because obesity rates are higher in Black and Hispanic populations, the chronic diseases linked to excess weight also hit these groups harder. Type 2 diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, and certain cancers all occur at elevated rates. But the relationship runs both ways: the same lack of healthcare access that contributes to obesity also makes it harder to manage these conditions once they develop. People without a regular doctor, without insurance, or without nearby clinics are less likely to catch rising blood sugar or blood pressure early enough to intervene effectively.
The result is a cycle where the communities with the highest obesity rates also face the steepest barriers to treatment, creating health gaps that widen over time rather than narrowing.
State-Level Variation
National averages mask significant geographic differences. The KFF’s state-level analysis of 2024 data shows that obesity rates for Black adults vary widely from state to state, as do rates for Hispanic and white adults. Southern states generally show higher obesity prevalence across all racial groups, while states in the West and Northeast tend to be lower. Some of this tracks with income, some with climate and walkability, and some with state-level food and healthcare policies. In several states, the racial gap in obesity is considerably larger or smaller than the national average, reinforcing that these disparities are shaped by local conditions, not biology alone.