Epidemiology of Obesity in Chinese Adults

The prevalence of obesity among Chinese adults has risen sharply over the past three decades, reflecting rapid economic growth, urbanisation and shifts towards energy-dense diets and sedentary lifestyles. Average body-mass index (BMI) values and waist circumferences have increased across all regions, with particularly steep rises in central obesity, which is recognised as a key driver of cardiometabolic risk. Urban populations initially exhibited higher rates of overweight and obesity, but rural areas have witnessed accelerated increases in recent years, narrowing the urban–rural gap. Age and sex patterns reveal that young and middle-aged men have experienced the greatest BMI gains, while women, especially those in later middle age, show disproportionate rises in abdominal adiposity. Socioeconomic factors such as education, income and occupation interact with lifestyle behaviours to shape obesity risk, and regional dietary traditions further modulate patterns of fat accumulation. The surge in obesity underlies mounting burdens of type 2 diabetes, hypertension and cardiovascular disease, straining health services and driving national policy agendas. Comprehensive surveillance, tailored prevention strategies and community-based interventions are now central to public health planning in China. The epidemiology of obesity in this context not only illustrates the challenges of rapid modernisation but also provides insights for other nations undergoing similar demographic and nutritional transitions.

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Epidemiology of Obesity in Chinese Adults publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in epidemiology of obesity in chinese adults across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Body-mass index (BMI): A person’s weight in kilograms divided by the square of height in metres, used to classify underweight, normal weight, overweight and obesity.

Central obesity: Excess visceral fat accumulation around the abdomen, typically assessed by waist circumference, associated with higher cardiometabolic risk.

Metabolically healthy obesity: An obesity phenotype characterised by elevated BMI without the usual metabolic disturbances such as insulin resistance, dyslipidaemia or hypertension.

mHealth: Use of mobile devices and applications to support public health and clinical interventions, including weight management.

Nutrition surveillance: Systematic collection, analysis and interpretation of data on dietary intake, anthropometry and related health indicators to guide public health action.

References

1. Weight Loss Using an mHealth App Among Individuals With Obesity in Different Economic Regions of China: Cohort Study. JMIR mHealth and uHealth (2024).
2. Obesity vs. Metabolically Healthy Obesity in East Asia. Encyclopedia (2023).
3. National nutrition surveillance programmes in south-east Asian countries and China: a systematic scoping review. Bulletin of the World Health Organization (2023).
4. The prevalence and increasing trends of overweight, general obesity, and abdominal obesity among Chinese adults: a repeated cross-sectional study. BMC Public Health (2019).
5. Increasing trends in central obesity among Chinese adults with normal body mass index, 1993–2009. BMC Public Health (2013).
6. Urban-rural-specific trend in prevalence of general and central obesity, and association with hypertension in Chinese adults, aged 18–65 years. BMC Public Health (2019).