Prevalence of stunting, height for age in Japan
Japan: Prevalence of stunting, height for age was 5.2% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Prevalence of stunting, height for age in Japan, 2000–2024
Source: Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME), UN Children's Fund (UNICEF).
Analysis
In 2024, prevalence of stunting, height for age in Japan stood at 5.2%.
That represents a change of up 2.0% on the previous year and down 18.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, prevalence of stunting, height for age in Japan peaked at 6.9% in 2008 and was at its lowest, 5.1%, in 2021.
Japan ranks 129th of 162 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 25 years of available data.
Prevalence of stunting, height for age in Japan, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 5.7% | — |
| 2001 | 5.9% | +3.5% |
| 2002 | 6.2% | +5.1% |
| 2003 | 6.4% | +3.2% |
| 2004 | 6.5% | +1.6% |
| 2005 | 6.7% | +3.1% |
| 2006 | 6.8% | +1.5% |
| 2007 | 6.8% | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 6.9% | +1.5% |
| 2009 | 6.9% | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 6.8% | -1.4% |
| 2011 | 6.7% | -1.5% |
| 2012 | 6.6% | -1.5% |
| 2013 | 6.5% | -1.5% |
| 2014 | 6.4% | -1.5% |
| 2015 | 6.2% | -3.1% |
| 2016 | 6.0% | -3.2% |
| 2017 | 5.8% | -3.3% |
| 2018 | 5.6% | -3.4% |
| 2019 | 5.4% | -3.6% |
| 2020 | 5.2% | -3.7% |
| 2021 | 5.1% | -1.9% |
| 2022 | 5.1% | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 5.1% | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 5.2% | +2.0% |
Japan compared with similar countries
- Japan's 5.2% is above the median for high income countries, which is 3.5%, 1.5× the median. (37 countries reporting)
- Japan's 5.2% is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 16.0%, 32% of the median. (27 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 6.5% | 5.7% | 6.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 6.2% | 5.4% | 6.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 5.1% | 5.1% | 5.2% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Japan
More health data for Japan
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -2.73 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate -0.2774 % change on previous year (2090)
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 1,294 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 178 deaths (2100)
- Neonatal tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 0 (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, annual growth rate -2.22 % 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 0.0155 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, annual growth rate -2.36 % 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 stunting, height for age in Japan?
- Prevalence of stunting, height for age in Japan was 5.2% in 2024, according to Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME), UN Children's Fund (UNICEF).
- What is the highest prevalence of stunting, height for age recorded in Japan?
- The highest recorded value was 6.9% in 2008.
- What is the lowest prevalence of stunting, height for age recorded in Japan?
- The lowest recorded value was 5.1% in 2021.
- How does Japan rank for prevalence of stunting, height for age?
- Japan ranks 129th out of 162 countries with data for 2024.
- Is prevalence of stunting, height for age rising or falling in Japan?
- Over the last ten years it is down 18.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Japan data come from?
- The figures come from Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME), UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), published as part of Prevalence of stunting, height for age (modeled estimate, % of children under 5). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 25 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Prevalence of stunting is the percentage of children under age 5 whose height for age is more than two standard deviations below the median for the international reference population ages 0-59 months. For children up to two years old height is measured by recumbent length. For older children height is measured by stature while standing. The data are based on the WHO's 2006 Child Growth Standards.