Prevalence of overweight in United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates: Prevalence of overweight was 71.3% in 2022. ▲ Rising
Prevalence of overweight in United Arab Emirates, 1990–2022
Source: World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory Data Repository (http://apps.who.int/ghodata/). Measured in % of adults.
Analysis
United Arab Emirates recorded 71.3% for prevalence of overweight in 2022. That is the highest value across all 33 years on record.
The figure is up 1.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, prevalence of overweight in United Arab Emirates peaked at 71.3% in 2022 and was at its lowest, 56.1%, in 1990.
United Arab Emirates ranks 23rd of 196 countries 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 United Arab Emirates, year by year
| Year | % of adults | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 56.1% | — |
| 1991 | 57.1% | +1.6% |
| 1992 | 58.0% | +1.6% |
| 1993 | 58.9% | +1.6% |
| 1994 | 59.8% | +1.5% |
| 1995 | 60.6% | +1.5% |
| 1996 | 61.5% | +1.4% |
| 1997 | 62.3% | +1.3% |
| 1998 | 63.1% | +1.3% |
| 1999 | 63.9% | +1.3% |
| 2000 | 64.7% | +1.2% |
| 2001 | 65.4% | +1.1% |
| 2002 | 66.1% | +1.0% |
| 2003 | 66.7% | +0.9% |
| 2004 | 67.2% | +0.8% |
| 2005 | 67.7% | +0.7% |
| 2006 | 68.2% | +0.8% |
| 2007 | 68.8% | +0.8% |
| 2008 | 69.4% | +0.9% |
| 2009 | 70.0% | +0.9% |
| 2010 | 70.2% | +0.4% |
| 2011 | 70.4% | +0.2% |
| 2012 | 70.5% | +0.2% |
| 2013 | 70.7% | +0.2% |
| 2014 | 70.8% | +0.2% |
| 2015 | 71.0% | +0.2% |
| 2016 | 71.1% | +0.2% |
| 2017 | 71.2% | +0.1% |
| 2018 | 71.3% | +0.1% |
| 2019 | 71.3% | +0.1% |
| 2020 | 71.3% | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 71.3% | -0.0% |
| 2022 | 71.3% | +0.0% |
United Arab Emirates compared with similar countries
- United Arab Emirates's 71.3% is above the median for high income countries, which is 60.7%, 1.2× the median. (66 countries reporting)
- United Arab Emirates's 71.3% is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 66.2%, 1.1× the median. (23 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 60.1% | 56.1% | 63.9% | 10 |
| 2000s | 67.4% | 64.7% | 70.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 70.9% | 70.2% | 71.3% | 10 |
| 2020s | 71.3% | 71.3% | 71.3% | 3 |
Countries ranked near United Arab Emirates
- 20 Saudi Arabia 71.8% compare
- 21 Micronesia, Federated States of 71.7% compare
- 22 Panama 71.6% compare
- 23 Palau 71.3% compare
- 25 Syrian Arab Republic 71.1% compare
- 26 Jordan 69.8% compare
More health data for United Arab Emirates
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -0.3472 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate 2.97 % change on previous year (2090)
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 308.9 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 287 deaths (2100)
- Neonatal tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 0 (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, annual growth rate 6.22 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per capita 0.0264 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, annual growth rate 3.35 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is prevalence of overweight in United Arab Emirates?
- Prevalence of overweight in United Arab Emirates was 71.3% 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 United Arab Emirates?
- The highest recorded value was 71.3% in 2022.
- What is the lowest prevalence of overweight recorded in United Arab Emirates?
- The lowest recorded value was 56.1% in 1990.
- How does United Arab Emirates rank for prevalence of overweight?
- United Arab Emirates ranks 23rd out of 196 countries with data for 2022.
- Is prevalence of overweight rising or falling in United Arab Emirates?
- Over the last ten years it is up 1.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this United Arab Emirates 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.