Obesity Fact Sheet in Korea, 2020: Prevalence of Obesity by Obesity Class from 2009 to 2018

Abstract

Lee 4,* , on behalf of the Taskforce Team of the Obesity Fact Sheet of the Korean Society for the Study of Obesity

Overcoming Increasing Morbid Obesity in Korea

“…In several developed countries, the prevalence of morbid obesity has been reported to quadruple as the obesity prevalence doubled. 9 This trend has also been reported in South Korea; an article by Nam et al 2 in this issue reported that the overall prevalence of obesity has increased during recent years and, moreover, the prevalence of class II and III obesity has also significantly increased in the population as a whole as well as nearly all age and sex groups based on the 2020 Obesity Fact Sheet by KSSO. 2 …”

“… 1 The BMI cutoff for obesity in Asians is ≥25 kg/m 2 and the Korean Society for the Study of Obesity (KSSO) categorizes a BMI of 25.0–29.9 kg/m 2 , 30.0–34.9 kg/m 2 , ≥35.0 kg/m 2 as class I, II, and III obesity, respectively. 2 …”

“…Obesity is associated with chronic diseases including metabolic disorders, cardiovascular diseases, obstructive sleep apnea, and certain cancers. 1 , 2 The disease burden may escalate as the degree of obesity increases and morbid obesity explicitly increases the risk of such comorbidities. Type 2 diabetes mellitus is highly prevalent in morbid obesity and patients with class III obesity account for 15.5% of newly-diagnosed type 2 diabetes mellitus.…”

The Influence of Obesity and Metabolic Health on Vascular Health

“…In recent decades, the prevalence of risk factors for CVD, such as diabetes, hypertension, obesity, and dyslipidemia, has been steadily increasing in Koreans. According to the Obesity Fact Sheet released by Korean Society for the Study of Obesity in 2020, based on NHIS data in 2018, the prevalence of obesity in Korea was 32.5% [ 4 ]. According to the Diabetes Fact Sheet released by the Korean Diabetes Association (KDA) in 2020, the prevalence of diabetes was 13.8% in Koreans older than 30 years, based on 2018 data from the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey [ 9 ].…”

“…Obesity is renowned for its tendency to be accompanied by comorbid diseases, such as diabetes, atherosclerosis, metabolic syndrome (MS), and sleep apnea [ 1 – 3 ]. The prevalence of obesity in adults older than 30 has reached 30% worldwide, and this high rate of obesity is particularly pronounced in Asians, due to rapid changes in dietary patterns and a sedentary lifestyle [ 4 ].…”