According to a new poll from Gallup, Americans' physical health has deteriorated since the pandemic, with more people reporting health conditions, less healthy eating, and more.

Americans' health has declined since the pandemic

For the poll, Gallup surveyed 5,316 U.S. adults between Aug. 30 and Sept. 8, 2023, about various aspects of their physical health. These participants were part of the Gallup Panel, which includes roughly 100,000 adults from all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia.

Overall, Gallup found that Americans' physical health had worsened since the pandemic, with more reporting being obese or having diabetes. In 2019, 32.4% of Americans said they were obese, and 12.5% said they had diabetes. By 2023, 38.4% said they were obese, and 13.6% said they had diabetes.

When it came to obesity rates since 2019, the biggest increases were among those ages 45 to 64 (8.2-percentage point increase) and those ages 30 to 44 (6.1-percentage point increase). Adults under the age of 30 did not see a significant increase in obesity rates.

Poorer eating habits likely contributed to the increase in obesity and diabetes diagnoses since the pandemic. Since 2019, the percentage of adults who reported eating healthy the day before has dropped from 51.7% to 46.7%. This decline in healthy eating was particularly large among individuals ages 30 to 44, who went from 44.5% in 2019 to 35.3% in 2023.

In addition, fewer U.S. adults are reporting eating at least five servings of fruits and vegetables on at least four days in the last week. In 2019, 49.9% of U.S. adults said they were eating this amount of produce compared to 42% in 2023. The decline in produce consumption was greatest among those ages 45 to 64 (10.5-percentage point decline) and those ages 30 to 44 (8.5-percentage point decline).

Although Americans' eating habits declined, their exercise habits remained largely unchanged compared to before the pandemic. In 2019, 48.1% of adults said they exercised 30 or more minutes at least three days a week compared to 49.1% of adults in 2023.

However, even though exercise habits remained the same, Americans' health worsened on several other metrics. More Americans now report being treated for high cholesterol, and fewer say they are active and productive every day. In addition, fewer Americans say that their physical health is near perfect or that they feel good about their physical appearance.

Commentary

According to Dan Witters, the director of Gallup's well-being research, the decline in Americans' health is "definitely pandemic-related," and the trends "are going to dovetail with the rising rates of obesity and diabetes."

Because healthy eating saw a particularly significant decline since the pandemic, Gallup recommends that "communities, organizations and government agencies alike … reinvigorate healthy eating priorities."

Some potential ways to do this include adding healthier choices to restaurant menus, company cafeterias, and school lunchrooms, moving health food markets to the front of grocery stores, and offering free healthy cooking classes.

These declines in health will also impact the U.S. economy. After controlling for age, income, and education, Gallup found that workers with poor physical health and poor well-being overall will have much greater unplanned absenteeism and healthcare utilization than their healthier counterparts. (Rubin, Axios, 12/14; Witters, Gallup, 12/14)