Which has higher prevalence of severe wasting, weight for height, Laos or World?

Laos, at 2.7% against 1.9% in World as of 2023.

How many years of comparable data are there for Laos and World?

6 years are reported by both, from 2000 to 2023.

Where does this data come from?

UNICEF, WHO, World Bank: Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME). Aggregation is based on UNICEF, WHO, and the World Bank harmonized dataset (adjusted, comparable data) and methodology., UN Children', published as Prevalence of severe wasting, weight for height (% of children under 5). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

Laos vs World: Prevalence of severe wasting, weight for height (% of children)

Laos

2.7%

in 2023

World

1.9%

in 2024

Laos rank

5th

World rank

5th

Prevalence of severe wasting, weight for height (% of children) over time

Laos
World

How they compare

Laos currently reports 2.7% against 1.9% in World, a difference of 0.8%.

That makes Laos's figure about 1.4 times World's.

The two have swapped places 2 times across 6 shared years of data; in 2000 it was Laos ahead.

Laos ranks 5th and World ranks 5th of 85 countries.

Laos has averaged higher in every one of the 3 decades both report.

Head to head by decade

Decade	Laos	World	Difference	Ahead
2000s	4.6%	2.6%	2.0%	Laos
2010s	2.3%	2.1%	0.2%	Laos
2020s	2.7%	1.9%	0.8%	Laos

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher prevalence of severe wasting, weight for height, Laos or World?: Laos, at 2.7% against 1.9% in World as of 2023.
What is the difference in prevalence of severe wasting, weight for height between Laos and World?: 0.8%, with Laos ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Laos and World?: 6 years are reported by both, from 2000 to 2023.
How do Laos and World rank globally for prevalence of severe wasting, weight for height?: Laos ranks 5th and World ranks 5th of 85 countries.
Where does this data come from?: UNICEF, WHO, World Bank: Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME). Aggregation is based on UNICEF, WHO, and the World Bank harmonized dataset (adjusted, comparable data) and methodology., UN Children', published as Prevalence of severe wasting, weight for height (% of children under 5). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

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Laos vs World: Prevalence of severe wasting, weight for height. Statizoid, drawing on UNICEF, WHO, World Bank: Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME). Aggregation is based on UNICEF, WHO, and the World Bank harmonized dataset (adjusted, comparable data) and methodology., UN Children'. Retrieved 12 November 2026, from https://health.statizoid.com/compare/prevalence-of-severe-wasting-weight-for-height-percent-of-children-under-5/lao-pdr/world/

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<a href="https://health.statizoid.com/compare/prevalence-of-severe-wasting-weight-for-height-percent-of-children-under-5/lao-pdr/world/">Laos vs World: Prevalence of severe wasting, weight for height</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator: Prevalence of severe wasting, weight for height (% of children under 5)
Unit: % of children under 5
Source: UNICEF, WHO, World Bank: Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME). Aggregation is based on UNICEF, WHO, and the World Bank harmonized dataset (adjusted, comparable data) and methodology., UN Children'
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage: 99 places, 1,131 data points, 1986–2024
Last refreshed: 29 October 2026

Prevalence of severe wasting is the proportion of children under age 5 whose weight for height is more than three standard deviations below the median for the international reference population ages 0-59 months.