Underweight in adults — all countries

Underweight in adults — Lower-middle-income countries

Underweight in adults in lower-middle-income countries in 2024 — 10.1%. Since 1980, the indicator has fallen by 27.4 pp.

2024 10.1% −0.4 pp vs 2023
World rank
Period maximum 37.6%1980
Period minimum 10.1%2024

Trend over time

1980–2024 · % of adults

Underweight in adults — Lower-middle-income countries, 1980–202401020304019801985199019952000200520102015202020241980: 37.6%1981: 36.9%1982: 36.2%1983: 35.5%1984: 34.8%1985: 34.1%1986: 33.4%1987: 32.8%1988: 32.1%1989: 31.5%1990: 30.8%1991: 30.2%1992: 29.6%1993: 29%1994: 28.5%1995: 27.9%1996: 27.4%1997: 26.8%1998: 26.2%1999: 25.6%2000: 25%2001: 24.4%2002: 23.7%2003: 23.1%2004: 22.4%2005: 21.8%2006: 21.1%2007: 20.4%2008: 19.7%2009: 19%2010: 18.3%2011: 17.6%2012: 16.9%2013: 16.2%2014: 15.5%2015: 14.8%2016: 14.2%2017: 13.6%2018: 13%2019: 12.5%2020: 12%2021: 11.5%2022: 11%2023: 10.6%2024: 10.1%
Change over the period: −27.4 pp Annual average: -0.62 pp

Comparison, 2024

How the value compares with the world and the groups this territory belongs to: Lower-middle-income countries

Lower-middle-income countries 10.1%
World computed 7.5%
Underweight in adults — Lower-middle-income countries, by year Lower-middle-income countries All countries CSV XLSX
Year % Change, pp
2024 10.1 −0.4 pp
2023 10.6 −0.4 pp
2022 11 −0.5 pp
2021 11.5 −0.5 pp
2020 12 −0.5 pp
2019 12.5 −0.5 pp
2018 13 −0.6 pp
2017 13.6 −0.6 pp
2016 14.2 −0.6 pp
2015 14.8 −0.7 pp
2014 15.5 −0.7 pp
2013 16.2 −0.7 pp
2012 16.9 −0.7 pp
2011 17.6 −0.7 pp
2010 18.3 −0.7 pp
2009 19 −0.7 pp
2008 19.7 −0.7 pp
2007 20.4 −0.7 pp
2006 21.1 −0.7 pp
2005 21.8 −0.7 pp
2004 22.4 −0.7 pp
2003 23.1 −0.7 pp
2002 23.7 −0.6 pp
2001 24.4 −0.6 pp
2000 25 −0.6 pp
1999 25.6 −0.6 pp
1998 26.2 −0.6 pp
1997 26.8 −0.6 pp
1996 27.4 −0.6 pp
1995 27.9 −0.5 pp
1994 28.5 −0.5 pp
1993 29 −0.6 pp
1992 29.6 −0.6 pp
1991 30.2 −0.6 pp
1990 30.8 −0.7 pp
1989 31.5 −0.6 pp
1988 32.1 −0.7 pp
1987 32.8 −0.7 pp
1986 33.4 −0.7 pp
1985 34.1 −0.7 pp
1984 34.8 −0.7 pp
1983 35.5 −0.7 pp
1982 36.2 −0.7 pp
1981 36.9 −0.7 pp
1980 37.6

About the indicator

The share of people aged 18 and over with a body mass index below 18.5 kg/m². The indicator moves in the direction opposite to obesity, and together they describe what is called the double burden of malnutrition: in many middle-income countries both shares are high at once — underweight persists in the countryside, obesity has already come to the city. The largest values are given by South Asia and the Horn of Africa.

Important: The aggregate by group is weighted by the whole population rather than the adult one. Underweight in adults and undernourishment are different indicators: the first measures the body, the second the intake of calories.

Source: Global Health Observatory (WHO), license CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO.