Prevalence of overweight, weight for height in Europe & Central Asia
Europe & Central Asia: Prevalence of overweight, weight for height was 7.5% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Prevalence of overweight, weight for height in Europe & Central Asia, 2000–2024
Source: Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME), UN Children's Fund (UNICEF).
Analysis
Europe & Central Asia recorded 7.5% for prevalence of overweight, weight for height in 2024.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 3.4% on the previous year and down 7.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, prevalence of overweight, weight for height in Europe & Central Asia peaked at 9.7% in 2005 and was at its lowest, 7.1%, in 2020.
That places Europe & Central Asia 16th out of 45 groups with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 25 years of available data.
Prevalence of overweight, weight for height in Europe & Central Asia, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 8.9% | — |
| 2001 | 9.1% | +2.0% |
| 2002 | 9.3% | +2.0% |
| 2003 | 9.5% | +1.9% |
| 2004 | 9.6% | +1.4% |
| 2005 | 9.7% | +0.7% |
| 2006 | 9.7% | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 9.6% | -0.6% |
| 2008 | 9.5% | -1.2% |
| 2009 | 9.3% | -1.8% |
| 2010 | 9.1% | -2.4% |
| 2011 | 8.8% | -2.7% |
| 2012 | 8.6% | -2.8% |
| 2013 | 8.3% | -2.9% |
| 2014 | 8.1% | -2.9% |
| 2015 | 7.9% | -3.1% |
| 2016 | 7.6% | -2.9% |
| 2017 | 7.4% | -2.6% |
| 2018 | 7.3% | -2.2% |
| 2019 | 7.2% | -1.5% |
| 2020 | 7.1% | -0.8% |
| 2021 | 7.1% | +0.1% |
| 2022 | 7.2% | +0.7% |
| 2023 | 7.3% | +1.7% |
| 2024 | 7.5% | +3.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 9.4% | 8.9% | 9.7% | 10 |
| 2010s | 8.0% | 7.2% | 9.1% | 10 |
| 2020s | 7.2% | 7.1% | 7.5% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Europe & Central Asia
- 13 Algeria 13.3% compare
- 14 Barbados 13.0% compare
- 14 Bosnia and Herzegovina 13.0% compare
- 16 Armenia 12.9% compare
- 17 South Africa 12.8% compare
- 18 Mongolia 12.3% compare
- 18 North Macedonia 12.3% compare
More health data for Europe & Central Asia
- Population ages 45-49, female, annual growth rate 0.9265 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 45-49, male, per capita 0.0339 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 45-49, male, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 10-14, female, per capita 0.0299 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 45-49, male, annual growth rate 1.04 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 45-49, female, per capita 0.0346 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 45-49, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 10-14, male, annual growth rate 0.6344 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 40-44, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 40-44, female, per capita 0.0352 units per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is prevalence of overweight, weight for height in Europe & Central Asia?
- Prevalence of overweight, weight for height in Europe & Central Asia was 7.5% in 2024, according to Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME), UN Children's Fund (UNICEF).
- What is the highest prevalence of overweight, weight for height recorded in Europe & Central Asia?
- The highest recorded value was 9.7% in 2005.
- What is the lowest prevalence of overweight, weight for height recorded in Europe & Central Asia?
- The lowest recorded value was 7.1% in 2020.
- How does Europe & Central Asia rank for prevalence of overweight, weight for height?
- Europe & Central Asia ranks 16th out of 45 groups with data for 2024.
- Is prevalence of overweight, weight for height rising or falling in Europe & Central Asia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 7.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Europe & Central Asia data come from?
- The figures come from Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME), UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), published as part of Prevalence of overweight, weight for height (modeled estimate, % of children under 5). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Prevalence of overweight children is the percentage of children under age 5 whose weight for height is more than two standard deviations above the median for the international reference population of the corresponding age as established by the WHO's 2006 Child Growth Standards.