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In 2024, men aged 55 to 64 years had an average body mass index (BMI) of 28.9 kg/m² and women in the same age group had a BMI of 28.6 kg/m², the highest mean BMI across all the age groups. Apart from women aged 16 to 24 years, every demographic in England had an average BMI which is classified as overweight.

An increasing problem

It is shown that the mean BMI of individuals for both men and women has been generally increasing year-on-year in England. The numbers show in England, as in the rest of the United Kingdom (UK), that the prevalence of obesity is an increasing health problem. The prevalence of obesity in women in England has increased by around 10 percent since 2000, while for men the share of obesity has increased by eight percent. 

Strain on the health service

Being overweight increases the chances of developing serious health problems such as diabetes, heart disease and certain types of cancers. In the period 2019/20, England experienced over 10.7 thousand hospital admissions with a primary diagnosis of obesity, whereas in 2002/03 this figure was only 1,275 admissions. Furthermore, the number of bariatric surgeries taking place in England, particularly among women, has significantly increased over the last fifteen years. In 2022/23, over 4.3 thousand bariatric surgery procedures were performed on women and approximately 800 were carried out on men.