1% Of U.S. Children Have Extremely Severe Obesity

About 1.13% of children in the United States in 2023 had extremely severe obesity, up from 0.32% of children in 2008. Extremely severe obesity is defined as a body mass index (BMI) of at least 160% of the 95th percentile for age. Affected participants had higher risks of metabolic complications, such as liver disease, prediabetes and diabetes, severe insulin resistance, and metabolic syndrome, than those with milder or no obesity. The researchers said the findings suggest that urgent public health interventions are needed to address pediatric obesity.;

Compared to children with milder forms of obesity, those with . . .