The Average Black Woman’s Weight in America

As I mentioned in another post about men’s weight, Americans have shown a steady increase in obesity over the years. As I look at the beautiful variety of African-American women in this country, I ask, “What is the average black woman’s weight in America?” This was among many other questions that I pondered about black physicality. I located the data presented here publicly available on the web and it represents but a fraction of the data that is available about black health.

We’ve all heard the standard comments about black women. Many people say that black women are “thicker” than other women. Others refer to them as having “more meat on their bones”. These are some of the more common compliments. In contrast, there are some that are quick to say that black women, as they age, become more unfit than other races of women. Those who say that often add that it’s a consequence of an unappreciated genetic superiority. In any case, I thought it would be useful to gather some real data.

According to the data from the reports used, the average black woman’s weight in America was around 186 pounds. However, it’s important to understand how we got that figure. I’ll show you exactly where that average comes from.

Obviously, weight impacts health. However, just how much is not as simple of a question as it may sound. All Americans are heavier than the average of several decades ago. Naturally, we would see the same trend when we look at the black community specifically.

So again, here, we are looking at the average black woman’s weight. We covered the same information regarding black men in this post.

Average Black Woman’s Weight Statistics

As I did for finding data regarding black male and black female height, I searched the National Health Statistics Report to find the necessary data. The CDC.gov website maintains this information for public use. Physicians and medical personnel conduct actual physical examinations of survey participates in order to gather the needed data. They compile these individual surveys into a larger report called the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). I used the same report here as I did with the men which included 9 NHANES 2-year cycles beginning in 1999 and ending in 2016.

The table below shows data for the Non-Hispanic Black Female Population only.

Mean Weight of Black Women (Non-Hispanic) 1999-2016

National Health Statistics Reports

The National Health Statistics Surveys provided plenty of interesting data regarding the changes in weight of the overall population. They identified both obvious and “not so obvious” trends when it comes to weight. Overall, it gave insight into the statements that we hear repeated about Americans gaining weight. It also allowed for comparing other communities to the African American community as well.

Objectives

The NHSR illustrates trends in mean weight. Other categories included height, waist circumference, and body mass index (BMI). However, surveyors limited the collection of data to adults in the United States from 1999–2000 through 2015–2016.

Methods

As mentioned previously, surveyors gathered the data from physical examinations. And, again, the sample represented adults aged 20 and over nationally. Surveyors gathered the data in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys during 1999–2016. Ultimately, they presented the data separately for men and women by age group, and by race. They also separated data depending upon Hispanic origin for each 2-year survey period. Ultimately, evaluators used linear regression to evaluate changes in weight (if any) over time.

Non-Hispanic Black Females

A Non-Hispanic black person is one having origins in any of the black racial groups of Africa. Furthermore, those in this category have no Hispanic origin. It’s important to note that much of this is self-identification. Also, race and Hispanic origin are two separate concepts in the federal statistical system. Believe it or not, people who are Hispanic may be of any race. So, people in each race group may be either Hispanic or Not Hispanic. Therefore, each person has two attributes. One attribute is their race (or races). And, another attribute is whether or not they are Hispanic.

Average Black Woman’s Weight Compared to Other Races

Research has shown that even if white and black women are the same heights and weights, they are perceived differently. Most people have a tendency to perceive black women as being bigger, more masculine, and heavier than her white counterpart.

Survey results show that white men in America are taller on average. In fact, this was true in every year of the survey. If that surprises you, you’re not alone. It was a surprise to me too. I was sure that black men were taller on average.

As I did with men, I added the weights for every year in the black and white categories of women. Likewise, I divided by 9. And similarly, there were 9 years included in the data. Here are the results;

• Non-Hispanic Black – 186.11 Pounds
• Non-Hispanic White – 165.55 Pounds

In contrast with the results of the men, there is a significant difference. On average, the non-Hispanic black female group averages much heavier. In fact, there is an over 20 pound difference between the two racial categories.

I expected to see a difference. However, I didn’t realize that the difference was this great.

Is this what you expected to see? Why or why not?

In any case, I hope that this info was as fascinating to you as it was to me!

Peace and Blessings!