Korean men are growing increasingly overweight. In 1998, three out of 10 men were obese, but the ratio rose to four last year. The increase was particularly high among men in their 30s and 40s, while there was almost no change in the proportion of overweight women over the same period.

According to a recent report by the Korean Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the adult obesity rate stood at 34.8 percent last year, compared to 33.2 percent in 2015. The government conducts annual studies on public health, including obesity and smoking. The adult obesity rate stood at 26 percent when the first study was conducted in 1998.

The male obesity rate reached 42.8 percent last year, surpassing 40 percent for the first time and up from just 25.1 percent in 1998. Among men in their 40s, the obesity rate rose from 33.3 percent to 45.6 percent, and among men in their 30s from 19.3 percent to 32.4 percent. But the female obesity rate has been steady at around 26 percent, and among women in their 40s it actually fell slightly from 29.8 percent to 28.7 percent.

A KCDC official said this is due to more women paying attention to their physical shape and putting in the effort to watch what they eat. One health expert said, "The latest statistics show Koreans may have grown more interested in how they look and what they eat, but still remain unenthusiastic when it comes to actually taking care of their health."