Prevalence of wasting, weight for height in Low & middle income
Low & middle income: Prevalence of wasting, weight for height was 6.9% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Prevalence of wasting, weight for height in Low & middle income, 2000–2024
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 in Low & middle income is 6.9%, measured in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.
That represents a change of down 0.6% on the previous year and down 9.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, prevalence of wasting, weight for height in Low & middle income peaked at 9.2% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 6.9%, in 2024.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 25 years of available data.
Prevalence of wasting, weight for height in Low & middle income, year by year
| Year | % of children under 5 | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 9.2% | — |
| 2001 | 9.1% | -1.0% |
| 2002 | 9.0% | -1.0% |
| 2003 | 8.9% | -1.0% |
| 2004 | 8.8% | -1.2% |
| 2005 | 8.7% | -1.2% |
| 2006 | 8.6% | -1.4% |
| 2007 | 8.5% | -1.4% |
| 2008 | 8.3% | -1.5% |
| 2009 | 8.2% | -1.7% |
| 2010 | 8.1% | -1.5% |
| 2011 | 8.0% | -1.5% |
| 2012 | 7.8% | -1.6% |
| 2013 | 7.7% | -1.5% |
| 2014 | 7.6% | -1.6% |
| 2015 | 7.5% | -1.5% |
| 2016 | 7.4% | -1.5% |
| 2017 | 7.3% | -1.4% |
| 2018 | 7.2% | -1.2% |
| 2019 | 7.1% | -1.0% |
| 2020 | 7.0% | -0.8% |
| 2021 | 7.0% | -0.6% |
| 2022 | 7.0% | -0.4% |
| 2023 | 6.9% | -0.4% |
| 2024 | 6.9% | -0.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 8.7% | 8.2% | 9.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 7.5% | 7.1% | 8.1% | 10 |
| 2020s | 7.0% | 6.9% | 7.0% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Low & middle income
More health data for Low & middle income
- Population ages 40-44, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 45-49, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 15-64, male, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 45-49, female, annual growth rate 1.41 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 40-44, male, per capita 0.0331 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 40-44, male, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 05-09, male, annual growth rate -0.9493 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 40-44, male, annual growth rate 2.33 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 40-44, female, per capita 0.0323 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 35-39, female, per capita 0.036 units per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is prevalence of wasting, weight for height in Low & middle income?
- Prevalence of wasting, weight for height in Low & middle income was 6.9% in 2024, 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 recorded in Low & middle income?
- The highest recorded value was 9.2% in 2000.
- What is the lowest prevalence of wasting, weight for height recorded in Low & middle income?
- The lowest recorded value was 6.9% in 2024.
- How does Low & middle income rank for prevalence of wasting, weight for height?
- Low & middle income ranks 4th out of 14 groups with data for 2024.
- Is prevalence of wasting, weight for height rising or falling in Low & middle income?
- Over the last ten years it is down 9.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Low & middle income 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 (% of children under 5). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Prevalence of wasting is the proportion of children 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.