>This serial cross-sectional study included medical data and self-reported information from 12,924 young adults aged 20 to 44 who participated in the long-running National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey conducted by the CDC.
The study population included 51 percent female, 57 percent white, 12 percent Mexican American, 8 percent other Hispanic, 13 percent Black, and 10 percent other race and ethnicities.
Wadhera and colleagues observed that the prevalence of hypertension increased from 9 percent during 2009–2010 to 12 percent a decade later.
Similarly, the researchers saw statistically significant increases in rates of diabetes, which climbed from 3 to 4 percent, and obesity, which rose from 33 to 41 percent during the study period.
The percentage of young adults with a smoking history was high and did not change.
In contrast, rates of high cholesterol declined from 41 percent in 2009–2010 to 36 percent in 2017–2020, a decrease the scientists suggest reflects government regulation of the use of trans fatty acids and other partially hydrogenated oils in packaged convenience foods and fast-food restaurants.
The researchers found substantial variation in prevalence of risk factors by race and ethnicity. Mexican Americans were the only group to experience a significant increase in diabetes.
Obesity significantly increased across all racial and ethnic groups except Black adults. While rates of hypertension increased among Mexican Americans and other Hispanic adults, Black adults experienced the highest rates of hypertension.

paper: https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2802263