Percentage of thinness among children aged 5-19 years, BMI < -2 in United States of America

United States of America: Percentage of thinness among children aged 5-19 years, BMI < -2 was 1.31 in 2022. ▼ Falling

Latest (2022)
1.31
Change on year
up 1.6%
World rank
180th
of 193 countries
All-time high
1.44
in 1995
All-time low
1.17
in 2009
Years of data
33
1990–2022

Percentage of thinness among children aged 5-19 years, BMI < -2 in United States of America, 1990–2022

00.511.51990200620221990: 1.41991: 1.41992: 1.41993: 1.41994: 1.41995: 1.41996: 1.41997: 1.41998: 1.41999: 1.42000: 1.42001: 1.42002: 1.32003: 1.32004: 1.22005: 1.22006: 1.22007: 1.22008: 1.22009: 1.22010: 1.22011: 1.22012: 1.22013: 1.22014: 1.22015: 1.22016: 1.22017: 1.22018: 1.22019: 1.32020: 1.32021: 1.32022: 1.3

Source: UNICEF.

Analysis

In 2022, percentage of thinness among children aged 5-19 years, bmi < -2 in United States of America stood at 1.31.

The figure is up 1.6% on the previous year and up 10.1% over ten years.

Over the whole period, percentage of thinness among children aged 5-19 years, bmi < -2 in United States of America peaked at 1.44 in 1995 and was at its lowest, 1.17, in 2009.

United States of America ranks 180th of 193 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 33 years of available data.

Percentage of thinness among children aged 5-19 years, BMI < -2 in United States of America, year by year

Annual values for Percentage of thinness among children aged 5-19 years, BMI < -2 standard deviations below the median (crude estimate) in United States of America, 1990 to 2022.
Year Value Change
1990 1.35
1991 1.37 +1.5%
1992 1.39 +1.5%
1993 1.41 +1.4%
1994 1.43 +1.4%
1995 1.44 +0.7%
1996 1.44 +0.0%
1997 1.44 +0.0%
1998 1.43 -0.7%
1999 1.41 -1.4%
2000 1.39 -1.4%
2001 1.35 -2.9%
2002 1.32 -2.2%
2003 1.28 -3.0%
2004 1.25 -2.3%
2005 1.22 -2.4%
2006 1.2 -1.6%
2007 1.19 -0.8%
2008 1.18 -0.8%
2009 1.17 -0.8%
2010 1.17 +0.0%
2011 1.18 +0.9%
2012 1.19 +0.8%
2013 1.2 +0.8%
2014 1.21 +0.8%
2015 1.22 +0.8%
2016 1.23 +0.8%
2017 1.24 +0.8%
2018 1.25 +0.8%
2019 1.26 +0.8%
2020 1.28 +1.6%
2021 1.29 +0.8%
2022 1.31 +1.6%

United States of America compared with similar countries

  • United States of America's 1.31 is below the median for high income countries, which is 2.31, 57% of the median. (61 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 1.41 1.35 1.44 10
2000s 1.26 1.17 1.39 10
2010s 1.22 1.17 1.26 10
2020s 1.29 1.28 1.31 3

Countries ranked near United States of America

  1. 177 Ireland 1.46 compare
  2. 178 Peru 1.39 compare
  3. 179 Netherlands 1.35 compare
  4. 181 Uruguay 1.3 compare
  5. 182 Greece 1.25 compare
  6. 183 Bolivia, Plurinational State of 1.22 compare

See the full ranking of 349 places →

More health data for United States of America

All data for United States of America →

Frequently asked questions

What is percentage of thinness among children aged 5-19 years, bmi < -2 in United States of America?
Percentage of thinness among children aged 5-19 years, bmi < -2 in United States of America was 1.31 in 2022, according to UNICEF.
What is the highest percentage of thinness among children aged 5-19 years, bmi < -2 recorded in United States of America?
The highest recorded value was 1.44 in 1995.
What is the lowest percentage of thinness among children aged 5-19 years, bmi < -2 recorded in United States of America?
The lowest recorded value was 1.17 in 2009.
How does United States of America rank for percentage of thinness among children aged 5-19 years, bmi < -2?
United States of America ranks 180th out of 193 countries with data for 2022.
Is percentage of thinness among children aged 5-19 years, bmi < -2 rising or falling in United States of America?
Over the last ten years it is up 10.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this United States of America data come from?
The figures come from UNICEF, published as part of Percentage of thinness among children aged 5-19 years, BMI < -2 standard deviations below the median (crude estimate). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Percentage of thinness among children aged 5-19 years, BMI < -2 in United States of America. Statizoid, drawing on UNICEF. Retrieved 14 September 2026, from https://health.statizoid.com/stat/percentage-of-thinness-among-children-aged-5-19-years-bmi-2-standard-deviations-below-the/united-states/

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About this data

Indicator
Percentage of thinness among children aged 5-19 years, BMI < -2 standard deviations below the median (crude estimate)
Source
UNICEF
Licence
UNICEF Terms of Use (attribution required)
Coverage
349 places, 9,957 data points, 1990–2022
Last refreshed