Prevalence of wasting, weight for height, female in Mexico

Mexico: Prevalence of wasting, weight for height, female was 0.6% in 2022. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2022)
0.6%
Change on year
down 64.7%
World rank
79th
of 86 countries
All-time high
6.2%
in 1988
All-time low
0.6%
in 2022
Years of data
12
1988–2022

Prevalence of wasting, weight for height, female in Mexico, 1988–2022

02461988200520221988: 6.2 % of children under 51998: 1.4 % of children under 52002: 3 % of children under 52005: 3.2 % of children under 52006: 1.5 % of children under 52012: 1.4 % of children under 52015: 0.7 % of children under 52016: 1.4 % of children under 52019: 1.1 % of children under 52020: 1.6 % of children under 52021: 1.7 % of children under 52022: 0.6 % of children under 5

Source: UNICEF, WHO, World Bank: Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME). Aggregation is based on UNICEF, WHO, and the World Bank harmonized dataset (adjusted, comparable data) and methodology., UN Children'. Measured in % of children under 5.

Analysis

The most recent figure for prevalence of wasting, weight for height, female in Mexico is 0.6%, measured in 2022. That is the lowest value across all 12 years on record.

The figure is down 64.7% on the previous year and down 57.1% over ten years.

Over the whole period, prevalence of wasting, weight for height, female in Mexico peaked at 6.2% in 1988 and was at its lowest, 0.6%, in 2022.

That places Mexico 79th out of 86 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the bottom quarter.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Prevalence of wasting, weight for height, female in Mexico, year by year

Annual values for Prevalence of wasting, weight for height, female (% of children under 5) in Mexico, 1988 to 2022.
Year % of children under 5 Change
1988 6.2%
1998 1.4% -77.4%
2002 3.0% +114.3%
2005 3.2% +6.7%
2006 1.5% -53.1%
2012 1.4% -6.7%
2015 0.7% -50.0%
2016 1.4% +100.0%
2019 1.1% -21.4%
2020 1.6% +45.5%
2021 1.7% +6.2%
2022 0.6% -64.7%

Mexico compared with similar countries

  • Mexico's 0.6% is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 2.6%, 23% of the median. (24 countries reporting)
  • Mexico's 0.6% is below the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 1.6%, 37% of the median. (15 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1980s 6.2% 6.2% 6.2% 1
1990s 1.4% 1.4% 1.4% 1
2000s 2.6% 1.5% 3.2% 3
2010s 1.1% 0.7% 1.4% 4
2020s 1.3% 0.6% 1.7% 3

Countries ranked near Mexico

  1. 76 Uruguay 1.1% compare
  2. 77 Paraguay 0.9% compare
  3. 78 Mongolia 0.8% compare
  4. 79 Ecuador 0.6% compare
  5. 79 Guatemala 0.6% compare
  6. 82 Peru 0.5% compare

See the full ranking of 86 places →

More health data for Mexico

All data for Mexico →

Frequently asked questions

What is prevalence of wasting, weight for height, female in Mexico?
Prevalence of wasting, weight for height, female in Mexico was 0.6% in 2022, according to UNICEF, WHO, World Bank: Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME). Aggregation is based on UNICEF, WHO, and the World Bank harmonized dataset (adjusted, comparable data) and methodology., UN Children'.
What is the highest prevalence of wasting, weight for height, female recorded in Mexico?
The highest recorded value was 6.2% in 1988.
What is the lowest prevalence of wasting, weight for height, female recorded in Mexico?
The lowest recorded value was 0.6% in 2022.
How does Mexico rank for prevalence of wasting, weight for height, female?
Mexico ranks 79th out of 86 countries with data for 2022.
Is prevalence of wasting, weight for height, female rising or falling in Mexico?
Over the last ten years it is down 57.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Mexico data come from?
The figures come from UNICEF, WHO, World Bank: Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME). Aggregation is based on UNICEF, WHO, and the World Bank harmonized dataset (adjusted, comparable data) and methodology., UN Children', published as part of Prevalence of wasting, weight for height, female (% of children under 5). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Prevalence of wasting, weight for height, female in Mexico. Statizoid, drawing on UNICEF, WHO, World Bank: Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME). Aggregation is based on UNICEF, WHO, and the World Bank harmonized dataset (adjusted, comparable data) and methodology., UN Children'. Retrieved 16 September 2026, from https://health.statizoid.com/stat/prevalence-of-wasting-weight-for-height-female-percent-of-children-under-5/mexico/

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About this data

Indicator
Prevalence of wasting, weight for height, female (% of children under 5)
Unit
% of children under 5
Source
UNICEF, WHO, World Bank: Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME). Aggregation is based on UNICEF, WHO, and the World Bank harmonized dataset (adjusted, comparable data) and methodology., UN Children'
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
86 places, 749 data points, 1986–2024
Last refreshed

Prevalence of wasting, female, is the proportion of girls under age 5 whose weight for height is more than two standard deviations below the median for the international reference population ages 0-59 months.