Ambient Temperature and Adult Obesity: Evidence from U.S. County-Level Panel Data

Adult obesity has been extensively studied in economics and public health, yet the empirical role of ambient climate conditions remains underexplored. This paper examines the relationship between average ambient temperature and adult obesity using U.S. county-level panel data from 2006 to 2018. Using fixed-effects regressions with controls for socioeconomic, demographic, and environmental factors, the analysis exploits within-county variation over time. The results indicate that higher ambient temperatures are associated with higher adult obesity rates, even after accounting for correlated environmental conditions. The findings highlight ambient temperature as a relevant environmental correlate of obesity and underscore the importance of environmental context in public health policy discussions.