Share of children who are overweight or obese in Japan
Japan: Share of children who are overweight or obese was 2.0% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Share of children who are overweight or obese in Japan, 2000–2024
Source: World Health Organization - Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for share of children who are overweight or obese in Japan is 2.0%, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 25 years on record.
The figure is up 5.3% on the previous year and up 33.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of children who are overweight or obese in Japan peaked at 2.0% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 1.5%, in 2003.
Japan ranks 153rd of 163 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 25 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 1.5% | 1.5% | 1.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.5% | 1.5% | 1.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.8% | 1.7% | 2.0% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Japan
More reference data data for Japan
- Spring temperature anomalies 1.24 °C (2026)
- Summer temperature anomalies 0.1053 °C (2026)
- Temperature anomalies by month -0.7172 °C (2026)
- Universal right to vote in practice 2 (2025)
- Autumn temperature anomalies 1.9 °C (2025)
- Winter temperature anomalies 0.5865 °C (2025)
- Consumer price index 118.04 2010 = 100 (2025)
- Universal right to vote 2 (2025)
- Competitive elections 1 (2025)
- Men's universal right to vote 1 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of children who are overweight or obese in Japan?
- Share of children who are overweight or obese in Japan was 2.0% in 2024, according to World Health Organization - Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of children who are overweight or obese recorded in Japan?
- The highest recorded value was 2.0% in 2024.
- What is the lowest share of children who are overweight or obese recorded in Japan?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.5% in 2003.
- How does Japan rank for share of children who are overweight or obese?
- Japan ranks 153rd out of 163 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of children who are overweight or obese rising or falling in Japan?
- Over the last ten years it is up 33.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Japan data come from?
- The figures come from World Health Organization - Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of children who are overweight or obese. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 25 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Share of children under five years old that are defined as overweight or obese. A child is classified as overweight if their weight-for-height is more than two standard deviations from the median of the World Health Organization (WHO) Child Growth Standards.