Prevalence of overweight in Least developed countries
Least developed countries: Prevalence of overweight was 26.5% in 2022. ▲ Rising
Prevalence of overweight in Least developed countries, 1990–2022
Source: World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory Data Repository (http://apps.who.int/ghodata/). Measured in % of adults.
Analysis
In 2022, prevalence of overweight in Least developed countries stood at 26.5%. That is the highest value across all 33 years on record.
That represents a change of up 3.1% on the previous year and up 38.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, prevalence of overweight in Least developed countries peaked at 26.5% in 2022 and was at its lowest, 8.0%, in 1990.
Least developed countries ranks 43rd of 43 groups on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 33 years of available data.
Prevalence of overweight in Least developed countries, year by year
| Year | % of adults | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 8.0% | — |
| 1991 | 8.3% | +3.8% |
| 1992 | 8.6% | +3.8% |
| 1993 | 8.9% | +4.0% |
| 1994 | 9.3% | +4.1% |
| 1995 | 9.7% | +4.1% |
| 1996 | 10.1% | +4.1% |
| 1997 | 10.5% | +4.1% |
| 1998 | 10.9% | +4.3% |
| 1999 | 11.4% | +4.3% |
| 2000 | 11.9% | +4.4% |
| 2001 | 12.4% | +4.4% |
| 2002 | 13.0% | +4.4% |
| 2003 | 13.5% | +4.4% |
| 2004 | 14.1% | +4.3% |
| 2005 | 14.7% | +4.2% |
| 2006 | 15.3% | +4.2% |
| 2007 | 16.0% | +4.0% |
| 2008 | 16.6% | +3.9% |
| 2009 | 17.2% | +3.8% |
| 2010 | 17.8% | +3.7% |
| 2011 | 18.5% | +3.6% |
| 2012 | 19.1% | +3.5% |
| 2013 | 19.8% | +3.5% |
| 2014 | 20.5% | +3.5% |
| 2015 | 21.2% | +3.5% |
| 2016 | 21.9% | +3.4% |
| 2017 | 22.7% | +3.4% |
| 2018 | 23.4% | +3.3% |
| 2019 | 24.2% | +3.2% |
| 2020 | 24.9% | +3.2% |
| 2021 | 25.7% | +3.1% |
| 2022 | 26.5% | +3.1% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 9.6% | 8.0% | 11.4% | 10 |
| 2000s | 14.5% | 11.9% | 17.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 20.9% | 17.8% | 24.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 25.7% | 24.9% | 26.5% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Least developed countries
More health data for Least developed countries
- Population ages 45-49, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 50-54, female, per capita 0.0169 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 50-54, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 50-54, female, annual growth rate 2.93 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 45-49, male, per capita 0.0197 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 45-49, male, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 45-49, male, annual growth rate 3.82 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 45-49, female, per capita 0.0204 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 40-44, female, per capita 0.0255 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 40-44, male, annual growth rate 3.29 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is prevalence of overweight in Least developed countries?
- Prevalence of overweight in Least developed countries was 26.5% 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 Least developed countries?
- The highest recorded value was 26.5% in 2022.
- What is the lowest prevalence of overweight recorded in Least developed countries?
- The lowest recorded value was 8.0% in 1990.
- How does Least developed countries rank for prevalence of overweight?
- Least developed countries ranks 43rd out of 43 groups with data for 2022.
- Is prevalence of overweight rising or falling in Least developed countries?
- Over the last ten years it is up 38.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Least developed countries 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.