A child is considered obese if they reach the 95th percentile on the growth charts, and severely obese at 120% of that mark — or with a BMI of 35 or higher, according to the CDC.

A child is considered obese if they reach the 95th percentile on the growth charts, and severely obese at 120% of that mark — or with a BMI of 35 or higher, according to the CDC.

"As an example, during 2017-March 2020, 19.7% of U.S. children and adolescents were above the 95th percentile of the 2000 CDC BMI-for-age growth charts and had obesity.

The old scale, which went up to 37, has been in use for more than two decades, even as the rate of childhood obesity in the U.S. has nearly quadrupled. Skip Navigation. Share on Facebook; ...

WASHINGTON — U.S. health officials have revised a tool to track the rising cases of severe obesity among children who were previously off the charts. Updated growth charts released Thursday by the ...