Prevalence of obesity among children aged 5-19 years, BMI > +2 in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Prevalence of obesity among children aged 5-19 years, BMI > +2 was 13.78 in 2022. ▲ Rising
Latest (2022)
13.78
Change on year
up 2.7%
World rank
60th
of 193 countries
All-time high
13.78
in 2022
All-time low
3.99
in 1990
Years of data
33
1990–2022
Prevalence of obesity among children aged 5-19 years, BMI > +2 in Costa Rica, 1990–2022
Source: UNICEF.
Analysis
Costa Rica recorded 13.78 for prevalence of obesity among children aged 5-19 years, bmi > +2 in 2022. That is the highest value across all 33 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 2.7% on the previous year and up 30.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, prevalence of obesity among children aged 5-19 years, bmi > +2 in Costa Rica peaked at 13.78 in 2022 and was at its lowest, 3.99, in 1990.
Costa Rica ranks 60th of 193 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 33 years of available data.
Prevalence of obesity among children aged 5-19 years, BMI > +2 in Costa Rica, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 3.99 | — |
| 1991 | 4.26 | +6.8% |
| 1992 | 4.54 | +6.6% |
| 1993 | 4.83 | +6.4% |
| 1994 | 5.12 | +6.0% |
| 1995 | 5.42 | +5.9% |
| 1996 | 5.73 | +5.7% |
| 1997 | 6.05 | +5.6% |
| 1998 | 6.36 | +5.1% |
| 1999 | 6.68 | +5.0% |
| 2000 | 6.99 | +4.6% |
| 2001 | 7.31 | +4.6% |
| 2002 | 7.62 | +4.2% |
| 2003 | 7.94 | +4.2% |
| 2004 | 8.25 | +3.9% |
| 2005 | 8.57 | +3.9% |
| 2006 | 8.87 | +3.5% |
| 2007 | 9.18 | +3.5% |
| 2008 | 9.47 | +3.2% |
| 2009 | 9.75 | +3.0% |
| 2010 | 10.03 | +2.9% |
| 2011 | 10.3 | +2.7% |
| 2012 | 10.57 | +2.6% |
| 2013 | 10.84 | +2.6% |
| 2014 | 11.12 | +2.6% |
| 2015 | 11.41 | +2.6% |
| 2016 | 11.71 | +2.6% |
| 2017 | 12.03 | +2.7% |
| 2018 | 12.36 | +2.7% |
| 2019 | 12.71 | +2.8% |
| 2020 | 13.06 | +2.8% |
| 2021 | 13.42 | +2.8% |
| 2022 | 13.78 | +2.7% |
Costa Rica compared with similar countries
- Costa Rica's 13.78 is above the median for high income countries, which is 11.55, 1.2× the median. (61 countries reporting)
- Costa Rica's 13.78 is below the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 17.02, 81% of the median. (32 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 5.3 | 3.99 | 6.68 | 10 |
| 2000s | 8.39 | 6.99 | 9.75 | 10 |
| 2010s | 11.31 | 10.03 | 12.71 | 10 |
| 2020s | 13.42 | 13.06 | 13.78 | 3 |
Countries ranked near Costa Rica
More health data for Costa Rica
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -2.78 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate 0.4617 % change on previous year (2090)
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 1,632 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 35 deaths (2100)
- Neonatal tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 0 (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, annual growth rate -3.42 % 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 0.0248 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, annual growth rate -3.37 % 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 prevalence of obesity among children aged 5-19 years, bmi > +2 in Costa Rica?
- Prevalence of obesity among children aged 5-19 years, bmi > +2 in Costa Rica was 13.78 in 2022, according to UNICEF.
- What is the highest prevalence of obesity among children aged 5-19 years, bmi > +2 recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 13.78 in 2022.
- What is the lowest prevalence of obesity among children aged 5-19 years, bmi > +2 recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.99 in 1990.
- How does Costa Rica rank for prevalence of obesity among children aged 5-19 years, bmi > +2?
- Costa Rica ranks 60th out of 193 countries with data for 2022.
- Is prevalence of obesity among children aged 5-19 years, bmi > +2 rising or falling in Costa Rica?
- Over the last ten years it is up 30.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Costa Rica data come from?
- The figures come from UNICEF, published as part of Prevalence of obesity among children aged 5-19 years, BMI > +2 standard deviations above the median (Crude estimate). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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