Share of men defined as underweight, healthy, overweight and obese in France

France: Share of men defined as underweight, healthy, overweight and obese was 0.5% in 2014. ▼ Falling

Latest (2014)
0.5%
Change on year
down 16.7%
World rank
158th
of 198 countries
All-time high
2.0%
in 1975
All-time low
0.5%
in 2014
Years of data
40
1975–2014

Share of men defined as underweight, healthy, overweight and obese in France, 1975–2014

0.511.521975199420141975: 2 %1976: 1.9 %1977: 1.8 %1978: 1.7 %1979: 1.6 %1980: 1.6 %1981: 1.5 %1982: 1.4 %1983: 1.4 %1984: 1.3 %1985: 1.3 %1986: 1.3 %1987: 1.2 %1988: 1.2 %1989: 1.1 %1990: 1.1 %1991: 1.1 %1992: 1 %1993: 1 %1994: 1 %1995: 0.9 %1996: 0.9 %1997: 0.9 %1998: 0.9 %1999: 0.8 %2000: 0.8 %2001: 0.8 %2002: 0.7 %2003: 0.7 %2004: 0.7 %2005: 0.7 %2006: 0.6 %2007: 0.6 %2008: 0.6 %2009: 0.6 %2010: 0.6 %2011: 0.6 %2012: 0.6 %2013: 0.6 %2014: 0.5 %

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 France stood at 0.5%. That is the lowest value across all 40 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 16.7% on the previous year and down 28.6% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of men defined as underweight, healthy, overweight and obese in France peaked at 2.0% in 1975 and was at its lowest, 0.5%, in 2014.

That places France 158th out of 198 countries with data for 2014, putting it in the bottom quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 40 years of available data.

Share of men defined as underweight, healthy, overweight and obese in France, year by year

Annual values for Share of men defined as underweight, healthy, overweight and obese in France, 1975 to 2014.
Year % Change
1975 2.0%
1976 1.9% -5.0%
1977 1.8% -5.3%
1978 1.7% -5.6%
1979 1.6% -5.9%
1980 1.6% +0.0%
1981 1.5% -6.3%
1982 1.4% -6.7%
1983 1.4% +0.0%
1984 1.3% -7.1%
1985 1.3% +0.0%
1986 1.3% +0.0%
1987 1.2% -7.7%
1988 1.2% +0.0%
1989 1.1% -8.3%
1990 1.1% +0.0%
1991 1.1% +0.0%
1992 1.0% -9.1%
1993 1.0% +0.0%
1994 1.0% +0.0%
1995 0.9% -10.0%
1996 0.9% +0.0%
1997 0.9% +0.0%
1998 0.9% +0.0%
1999 0.8% -11.1%
2000 0.8% +0.0%
2001 0.8% +0.0%
2002 0.7% -12.5%
2003 0.7% +0.0%
2004 0.7% +0.0%
2005 0.7% +0.0%
2006 0.6% -14.3%
2007 0.6% +0.0%
2008 0.6% +0.0%
2009 0.6% +0.0%
2010 0.6% +0.0%
2011 0.6% +0.0%
2012 0.6% +0.0%
2013 0.6% +0.0%
2014 0.5% -16.7%

France compared with similar countries

  • France's 0.5% is below the median for high income countries, which is 0.6%, 83% of the median. (67 countries reporting)
  • France's 0.5% is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 0.6%, 83% of the median. (50 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 1.8% 1.6% 2.0% 5
1980s 1.3% 1.1% 1.6% 10
1990s 1.0% 0.8% 1.1% 10
2000s 0.7% 0.6% 0.8% 10
2010s 0.6% 0.5% 0.6% 5

Countries ranked near France

  1. 158 Bulgaria 0.5% compare
  2. 158 Denmark 0.5% compare
  3. 158 Hungary 0.5% compare
  4. 158 Israel 0.5% compare
  5. 158 Malta 0.5% compare
  6. 158 Montenegro 0.5% compare
  7. 158 Netherlands 0.5% compare
  8. 158 Slovenia 0.5% compare
  9. 158 Sweden 0.5% compare

See the full ranking of 198 places →

More reference data data for France

All data for France →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of men defined as underweight, healthy, overweight and obese in France?
Share of men defined as underweight, healthy, overweight and obese in France was 0.5% 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 France?
The highest recorded value was 2.0% in 1975.
What is the lowest share of men defined as underweight, healthy, overweight and obese recorded in France?
The lowest recorded value was 0.5% in 2014.
How does France rank for share of men defined as underweight, healthy, overweight and obese?
France ranks 158th out of 198 countries with data for 2014.
Is share of men defined as underweight, healthy, overweight and obese rising or falling in France?
Over the last ten years it is down 28.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this France 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.

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Share of men defined as underweight, healthy, overweight and obese in France. Statizoid, drawing on NCD Risk Factor Collaboration (2017) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 22 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/men-weight-categories/france/

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About this data

Indicator
Share of men defined as underweight, healthy, overweight and obese
Unit
%
Source
NCD Risk Factor Collaboration (2017) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
198 places, 7,920 data points, 1975–2014
Last refreshed

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.