Share of men defined as underweight, healthy, overweight and obese in Afghanistan
Afghanistan: Share of men defined as underweight, healthy, overweight and obese was 21.0% in 2014. ▼ Falling
Share of men defined as underweight, healthy, overweight and obese in Afghanistan, 1975–2014
Source: NCD Risk Factor Collaboration (2017) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2014, share of men defined as underweight, healthy, overweight and obese in Afghanistan stood at 21.0%. That is the lowest value across all 40 years on record.
The figure is down 1.4% on the previous year and down 10.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of men defined as underweight, healthy, overweight and obese in Afghanistan peaked at 29.5% in 1975 and was at its lowest, 21.0%, in 2014.
Afghanistan ranks 3rd of 198 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 40 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 29.3% | 29.0% | 29.5% | 5 |
| 1980s | 27.8% | 26.7% | 28.8% | 10 |
| 1990s | 25.6% | 24.5% | 26.5% | 10 |
| 2000s | 23.3% | 22.3% | 24.3% | 10 |
| 2010s | 21.5% | 21.0% | 22.0% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Afghanistan
- 1 India 24.5% compare
- 2 Bangladesh 23.1% compare
- 4 Eritrea 20.4% compare
- 5 Ethiopia 20.2% compare
- 6 Central African Republic 19.1% compare
- 6 Democratic Republic of Congo 19.1% compare
More reference data data for Afghanistan
- Spring temperature anomalies 3.05 °C (2026)
- Temperature anomalies by month -0.1923 °C (2026)
- Summer temperature anomalies 0.6919 °C (2026)
- Elected parliament 0 (2025)
- Universal right to vote in practice 0 (2025)
- Free country 0 (2025)
- Civil liberties rating 7 (2025)
- Universal right to vote 2 (2025)
- Autumn temperature anomalies 1.44 °C (2025)
- Democracy 0 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of men defined as underweight, healthy, overweight and obese in Afghanistan?
- Share of men defined as underweight, healthy, overweight and obese in Afghanistan was 21.0% in 2014, according to NCD Risk Factor Collaboration (2017) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of men defined as underweight, healthy, overweight and obese recorded in Afghanistan?
- The highest recorded value was 29.5% in 1975.
- What is the lowest share of men defined as underweight, healthy, overweight and obese recorded in Afghanistan?
- The lowest recorded value was 21.0% in 2014.
- How does Afghanistan rank for share of men defined as underweight, healthy, overweight and obese?
- Afghanistan ranks 3rd out of 198 countries with data for 2014.
- Is share of men defined as underweight, healthy, overweight and obese rising or falling in Afghanistan?
- Over the last ten years it is down 10.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Afghanistan data come from?
- The figures come from NCD Risk Factor Collaboration (2017) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of men defined as underweight, healthy, overweight and obese. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 40 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Share of men (% of adult population), who are underweight, healthy/normal, overweight or obese based on body mass index (BMI). Body Mass Index (BMI) is a person's weight divided by their height squared. The WHO define a BMI <=18.5 as underweight; 18.6 to 25.0 as normal/healthy; 25.1 to 30 as overweight; and >30.0 as obese.