Prevalence of overweight in Arab World
Arab World: Prevalence of overweight was 61.9% in 2022. ▲ Rising
Prevalence of overweight in Arab World, 1990–2022
Source: World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory Data Repository (http://apps.who.int/ghodata/). Measured in % of adults.
Analysis
The most recent figure for prevalence of overweight in Arab World is 61.9%, measured in 2022. That is the highest value across all 33 years on record.
The figure is up 0.8% on the previous year and up 7.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, prevalence of overweight in Arab World peaked at 61.9% in 2022 and was at its lowest, 41.7%, in 1990.
Arab World ranks 6th of 43 groups on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 33 years of available data.
Prevalence of overweight in Arab World, year by year
| Year | % of adults | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 41.7% | — |
| 1991 | 42.5% | +1.9% |
| 1992 | 43.3% | +2.0% |
| 1993 | 44.1% | +1.8% |
| 1994 | 44.9% | +1.8% |
| 1995 | 45.7% | +1.8% |
| 1996 | 46.5% | +1.8% |
| 1997 | 47.3% | +1.7% |
| 1998 | 48.1% | +1.7% |
| 1999 | 48.9% | +1.7% |
| 2000 | 49.7% | +1.6% |
| 2001 | 50.5% | +1.6% |
| 2002 | 51.3% | +1.5% |
| 2003 | 52.1% | +1.5% |
| 2004 | 52.8% | +1.4% |
| 2005 | 53.5% | +1.3% |
| 2006 | 54.2% | +1.3% |
| 2007 | 54.9% | +1.3% |
| 2008 | 55.5% | +1.2% |
| 2009 | 56.1% | +1.1% |
| 2010 | 56.6% | +0.9% |
| 2011 | 57.1% | +1.0% |
| 2012 | 57.7% | +0.9% |
| 2013 | 58.2% | +0.9% |
| 2014 | 58.6% | +0.8% |
| 2015 | 59.1% | +0.8% |
| 2016 | 59.6% | +0.8% |
| 2017 | 60.0% | +0.6% |
| 2018 | 60.3% | +0.6% |
| 2019 | 60.7% | +0.6% |
| 2020 | 61.1% | +0.7% |
| 2021 | 61.5% | +0.6% |
| 2022 | 61.9% | +0.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 45.3% | 41.7% | 48.9% | 10 |
| 2000s | 53.1% | 49.7% | 56.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 58.8% | 56.6% | 60.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 61.5% | 61.1% | 61.9% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Arab World
More health data for Arab World
- Population ages 30-34, male, per capita 0.0426 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 40-44, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 40-44, female, annual growth rate 3.06 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 35-39, male, per capita 0.0398 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 35-39, male, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 35-39, male, annual growth rate 2.49 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 35-39, female, per capita 0.0338 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 35-39, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 35-39, female, annual growth rate 1.92 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 25-29, male, per capita 0.0432 units per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is prevalence of overweight in Arab World?
- Prevalence of overweight in Arab World was 61.9% in 2022, according to World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory Data Repository (http://apps.who.int/ghodata/).
- What is the highest prevalence of overweight recorded in Arab World?
- The highest recorded value was 61.9% in 2022.
- What is the lowest prevalence of overweight recorded in Arab World?
- The lowest recorded value was 41.7% in 1990.
- How does Arab World rank for prevalence of overweight?
- Arab World ranks 6th out of 43 groups with data for 2022.
- Is prevalence of overweight rising or falling in Arab World?
- Over the last ten years it is up 7.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Arab World data come from?
- The figures come from World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory Data Repository (http://apps.who.int/ghodata/), published as part of Prevalence of overweight (% of adults). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 33 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Prevalence of overweight adults is the percentage of adults ages 18 and over whose Body Mass Index (BMI) is more than 25 kg/m2. Body Mass Index (BMI) is a simple index of weight-for-height, or the weight in kilograms divided by the square of the height in meters.