A geographical comparison of prevalence of overweight school-aged children: the National Survey of Children's Health 2003.

OBJECTIVES: This study presents a geographical comparison of state-specific prevalence estimates of children who are at risk of overweight and/or overweight using the 2003 National Survey of Children's Health.

METHODS: Using the 2003 National Survey of Children's Health, we computed prevalence estimates of children who are at risk of overweight and/or overweight among a nationally representative sample of 69,000 children between 5 and 17 years old.

RESULTS: Overall, 36.4% of the children (39.8% of the boys and 32% of the girls) in the sample were in the combined category of at risk of overweight or overweight, representing an estimated 17 million US children. We found geographic variation at the state and the regional levels. The southeastern states, especially those west of the Appalachians and in the lower Mississippi region, had the highest prevalence of children who are at risk of overweight and/or overweight. The central Rocky Mountain states of Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming had the lowest prevalence, followed by the northwestern quadrant of the lower 48 states and New England.

CONCLUSIONS: These National Survey of Children's Health data provide clinicians and public health professionals with useful data required for policy and planning related to childhood obesity at state levels. These data also serve as important baseline indicators and can be used to track changes over time.