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• Non-Hispanic Whites are 60% more likely to be obese as Asian Americans.
• Filipino adults are 70% more likely to be obese as compared to the overall Asian population.
• About 1 in 10 Vietnamese and Korean adults are underweight.¹

Age-adjusted percentage of persons 18 years of age and over who are overweight but not obese, 2010. (Persons are considered overweight if they have a Body Mass Index (BMI) of 25 or greater.)

Asians	Non-Hispanic White	Asians/Non-Hispanic White Ratio
29.4	33.7	0.9

Source:  CDC 2012. Summary Health Statistics for U.S. Adults: 2010. Table 31.
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/series/sr_10/sr10_252.pdf [PDF | 3MB]

Age-adjusted percentage of persons 18 years of age and over who are obese, 2010. (Persons are considered obese if they have a Body Mass Index (BMI) of 30 or greater.)

Asians	Non-Hispanic White	Asians/Non-Hispanic White Ratio
11.6	26.1	0.4

Source:  CDC 2012. Summary Health Statistics for U.S. Adults: 2010. Table 31.
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/series/sr_10/sr10_252.pdf [PDF | 3MB]

Age-adjusted percent distributions of selected health behaviors for adults 18 years of age and over, 2004–2006, overweight but not obese

Population	Overweight	Ratio Overweight/ All Asian Population	Ratio Overweight / Whites
All Whites	34.6	--	--
All Asians		--	0.8
Chinese	21.8	0.8	0.6
Filipino	33.0	1.2	1.0
Asian Indian	34.4	1.3	1.0
Japanese	25.9	0.9	0.7
Vietnamese	19.1	0.7	0.5
Korean	27.3	1.0	0.8
Other Asian & NHOPI	29.2	1.1	0.8

Source:  CDC, 2008. Health Characteristics of the Asian Adult Population: United States, 2004-2006. Table 2.
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/ad/ad394.pdf [PDF | 476KB]

Age-adjusted percent distributions of selected health behaviors for adults 18 years of age and over, 2004–2006, obese

Population	Obese	Ratio Obese/ All Asian Population	Ratio Obese / Whites
All Whites	23.6	--	--
All Asians	8.1	--	0.3
Chinese	4.2	0.5	0.2
Filipino	14.1	1.7	0.6
Asian Indian	6.0	0.7	0.3
Japanese	8.7	1.1	0.4
Vietnamese	5.3	0.7	0.3
Korean	2.8	0.3	0.1
Other Asian & NHOPI	12.5	1.5	0.5

Source:  CDC, 2008. Health Characteristics of the Asian Adult Population: United States, 2004-2006. Table 2.
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/ad/ad394.pdf [PDF | 476KB]

CHILDREN

Percent of children age 2-17 for whom a doctor or other health provider gave ever advice about amount and kind of physical activity, United States, 2008

Asian	Non-Hispanic White	Asian/Non-Hispanic White Ratio
30.1	32.2	0.9

Source:  2011 National Healthcare Quality Report. Table 9_1_8.2a and 2b.
http://www.ahrq.gov/qual/qrdr11/index.html

Percent of children age 2-17 for whom a doctor or other health provider ever gave advice about eating healthy, United States, 2008

Asian	Non-Hispanic White	Asian/Non-Hispanic White Ratio
48.7	49.0	1.0

Source:  2011 National Healthcare Quality Report. Table 9_1_9.2a and 2b.
http://www.ahrq.gov/qual/qrdr11/index.html

HEALTH IMPACT OF OBESITY

• More than 80 percent of people with type 2 diabetes are overweight. ²
• People who are overweight are more likely to suffer from high blood pressure, high levels of blood fats, and LDL cholesterol ("a fatlike substance") -- all risk factors for heart disease and stroke. ²
• In 2007, Asian Americans were 1.1 times more likely to engage in inactive physical activity.
• From 2003-2004, Asian Americans were 1.4 times more likely to access outpatient counseling on exercise.

Physical Activity:

Percentage Inactive physical activity among adults 18 & over: 2010 (Did not meet federal physical activity guidelines)

Asian	Non-Hispanic White	Asian/ Non-Hispanic White Ratio
51.7	45.1	1.1

Source:  CDC 2012. Summary Health Statistics for U.S. Adults: 2010. Table 29.
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/series/sr_10/sr10_252.pdf [PDF | 3MB]

Percentage Some Leisure Time Physical Activity Among Adults 18 & over: 2010 (Met aerobic guidelines only)

Asian	Non-Hispanic White	Asian/ Non-Hispanic White Ratio
26.4	28.5	0.9

Source:  CDC 2012. Summary Health Statistics for U.S. Adults: 2010. Table 29.
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/series/sr_10/sr10_252.pdf [PDF | 3MB]

Percentage Regular Leisure Physical Activity Among Adults 18 & over: 2010 (Met federal physical activity guidelines)

Asian	Non-Hispanic White	Asian/ Non-Hispanic White Ratio
17.8	22.8	0.9

Source:  CDC 2012. Summary Health Statistics for U.S. Adults: 2010. Table 29.
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/series/sr_10/sr10_252.pdf [PDF | 3MB]

At a Glace – Risk Factors

Obesity is a risk factor for several diseases. For statistics on these related diseases see:

Diabetes – See Diabetes and Asians/Pacific Islanders

Heart Disease – See Heart Disease and Asians/Pacific Islanders

Stroke – See Stroke and Asians/Pacific Islanders