Overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) in Korea
Korea: Overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) was 5.5% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Latest (2024)
5.5%
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
81st
of 162 countries
All-time high
7.5%
in 2000
All-time low
5.5%
in 2023
Years of data
25
2000–2024
Overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) in Korea, 2000–2024
Source: World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory.
Analysis
Korea recorded 5.5% for overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 14.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) in Korea peaked at 7.5% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 5.5%, in 2023.
That places Korea 81st out of 162 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 25 years of available data.
Overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) in Korea, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 7.5% | — |
| 2001 | 7.5% | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 7.5% | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 7.4% | -1.3% |
| 2004 | 7.4% | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 7.4% | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 7.3% | -1.4% |
| 2007 | 7.2% | -1.4% |
| 2008 | 7.1% | -1.4% |
| 2009 | 7.0% | -1.4% |
| 2010 | 6.9% | -1.4% |
| 2011 | 6.8% | -1.4% |
| 2012 | 6.7% | -1.5% |
| 2013 | 6.5% | -3.0% |
| 2014 | 6.4% | -1.5% |
| 2015 | 6.3% | -1.6% |
| 2016 | 6.2% | -1.6% |
| 2017 | 6.0% | -3.2% |
| 2018 | 5.9% | -1.7% |
| 2019 | 5.8% | -1.7% |
| 2020 | 5.7% | -1.7% |
| 2021 | 5.6% | -1.8% |
| 2022 | 5.6% | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 5.5% | -1.8% |
| 2024 | 5.5% | +0.0% |
Korea compared with similar countries
- Korea's 5.5% is below the median for high income countries, which is 8.6%, 64% of the median. (38 countries reporting)
- Korea's 5.5% is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 5.5%, 1.0× the median. (27 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 7.3% | 7.0% | 7.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 6.3% | 5.8% | 6.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 5.6% | 5.5% | 5.7% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Korea
More health data for Korea
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -1.43 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate 0.1935 % change on previous year (2090)
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 2,072 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 69 deaths (2100)
- Neonatal tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 0 (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, annual growth rate -2.66 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per capita 0.0118 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, annual growth rate -2.76 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) in Korea?
- Overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) in Korea was 5.5% in 2024, according to World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory.
- What is the highest overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) recorded in Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 7.5% in 2000.
- What is the lowest overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) recorded in Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 5.5% in 2023.
- How does Korea rank for overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%)?
- Korea ranks 81st out of 162 countries with data for 2024.
- Is overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (%) rising or falling in Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is down 14.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Korea data come from?
- The figures come from World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory, published as part of Overweight prevalence among children under 5 years of age (% weight-for-height >+2 SD), model-based estimates. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 25 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (WHO).