2025 Obesity Fact Sheet for Korea: Prevalence of Obesity, Abdominal Obesity from 2014 to 2023 and Prevalence of Chronic Disease by Obesity Status

Abstract

Background: The 2025 obesity fact sheet provides an updated overview of the prevalence of obesity and abdominal obesity, as well as the prevalence of major chronic diseases according to obesity status in Korea. Methods: This study analyzed data from 17,576,389 adults who underwent general health examinations provided by the National Health Insurance Service from 2014 to 2023 and 17,660 participants from the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2019–2021). Results: In 2023, the prevalence of obesity and abdominal obesity was 38.4% (male 49.8%, female 27.5%) and 24.3% (male 31.3%, female 17.7%), respectively. Class II obesity was most prevalent among individuals aged 35–39 years (9.4%), and class III obesity peaked among those aged 30–34 years (2.6%). The prevalence of chronic diseases—including hypertension, diabetes mellitus, hypercholesterolemia, metabolic syndrome, and hyperuricemia—was 1.5- to 3.6-fold higher in individuals with obesity than in those without obesity, with particularly large differences in young adults and female. The prevalence of obstructive sleep apnea was 4.5-fold higher in the obese group, whereas osteoporosis was less common in the obese group than the non-obese group. Conclusion: The 2025 obesity fact sheet provides updated national data on obesity, abdominal obesity, and obesity-related chronic diseases in Korea, highlighting the substantial and persistent burden associated with obesity. These findings emphasize the urgent need for timely and effective strategies for obesity prevention and management. Copyright