A growing variety of younger American adults aged 18 to 34 have been affected by chronic health conditions like obesity, hypertension, and depression, in accordance with recent federal data.

Released by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in its Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR), the info indicated that in 2019, greater than half of young adults (similar to nearly 54%) handled at the least one chronic health issue. Almost one in every 4 (or 22%) had two or more of those conditions.

“Essentially the most prevalent conditions were obesity (25.5%), depression (21.3%), and hypertension (10.7%),” said the team led by Kathleen Watson, of the CDC’s National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion.

Of the aspects, a high cholesterol level was essentially the most prevalent, affecting about 10% of adults under 35. Meanwhile, asthma affected over 9%, while 6% had arthritis.

The findings weren’t surprising. Based on previous data from the CDC, nearly 12% of adults age 20 and older had total cholesterol higher than 240 mg/dL, and about 17% had high-density lipoprotein (HDL) or “good” levels of cholesterol lower than 40 mg/dL in 2015-2018. Because high cholesterol doesn’t have symptoms, many individuals are unaware that their cholesterol level is already too high, raising the chance for heart disease, stroke, and other chronic health conditions.

The degrees also contributed to the obesity rate within the country, which continues to rise with each passing yr. Obesity is attributable to unhealthy and sedentary lifestyles, in addition to the standard Western weight loss plan.

It’s not only physical health conditions as well, because the MMWR also reported that 27% of young adult women and 16% of young adult men were affected by depression, with rates especially high among the many unemployed (31%).

“Because chronic conditions turn into more prevalent with age, a concentrate on prevention and risk aspects is crucial for health across the life span. Addressing health behaviors and intermediate conditions amongst young adults can assist improve long-term health and well-being over the life course,” Watson’s team concluded.