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

Tanzania: Share of men defined as underweight, healthy, overweight and obese was 13.3% in 2014. ▼ Falling

Latest (2014)
13.3%
Change on year
down 1.5%
World rank
31st
of 198 countries
All-time high
16.9%
in 1975
All-time low
13.3%
in 2014
Years of data
40
1975–2014

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

0510151975199420141975: 16.9 %1976: 16.8 %1977: 16.8 %1978: 16.7 %1979: 16.7 %1980: 16.7 %1981: 16.6 %1982: 16.6 %1983: 16.6 %1984: 16.5 %1985: 16.5 %1986: 16.5 %1987: 16.4 %1988: 16.4 %1989: 16.3 %1990: 16.3 %1991: 16.2 %1992: 16.1 %1993: 16.1 %1994: 16 %1995: 16 %1996: 15.9 %1997: 15.9 %1998: 15.8 %1999: 15.7 %2000: 15.7 %2001: 15.6 %2002: 15.5 %2003: 15.4 %2004: 15.3 %2005: 15.2 %2006: 15 %2007: 14.8 %2008: 14.6 %2009: 14.4 %2010: 14.2 %2011: 14 %2012: 13.7 %2013: 13.5 %2014: 13.3 %

Source: NCD Risk Factor Collaboration (2017) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.

Analysis

Tanzania recorded 13.3% for share of men defined as underweight, healthy, overweight and obese in 2014. That is the lowest value across all 40 years on record.

That represents a change of down 1.5% on the previous year and down 13.1% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of men defined as underweight, healthy, overweight and obese in Tanzania peaked at 16.9% in 1975 and was at its lowest, 13.3%, in 2014.

Tanzania ranks 31st of 198 countries on this measure, in the top 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 Tanzania, year by year

Annual values for Share of men defined as underweight, healthy, overweight and obese in Tanzania, 1975 to 2014.
Year % Change
1975 16.9%
1976 16.8% -0.6%
1977 16.8% +0.0%
1978 16.7% -0.6%
1979 16.7% +0.0%
1980 16.7% +0.0%
1981 16.6% -0.6%
1982 16.6% +0.0%
1983 16.6% +0.0%
1984 16.5% -0.6%
1985 16.5% +0.0%
1986 16.5% +0.0%
1987 16.4% -0.6%
1988 16.4% +0.0%
1989 16.3% -0.6%
1990 16.3% +0.0%
1991 16.2% -0.6%
1992 16.1% -0.6%
1993 16.1% +0.0%
1994 16.0% -0.6%
1995 16.0% +0.0%
1996 15.9% -0.6%
1997 15.9% +0.0%
1998 15.8% -0.6%
1999 15.7% -0.6%
2000 15.7% +0.0%
2001 15.6% -0.6%
2002 15.5% -0.6%
2003 15.4% -0.6%
2004 15.3% -0.6%
2005 15.2% -0.7%
2006 15.0% -1.3%
2007 14.8% -1.3%
2008 14.6% -1.4%
2009 14.4% -1.4%
2010 14.2% -1.4%
2011 14.0% -1.4%
2012 13.7% -2.1%
2013 13.5% -1.5%
2014 13.3% -1.5%

Tanzania compared with similar countries

  • Tanzania's 13.3% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 11.1%, 1.2× the median. (46 countries reporting)
  • Tanzania's 13.3% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 12.9%, 1.0× the median. (46 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 16.8% 16.7% 16.9% 5
1980s 16.5% 16.3% 16.7% 10
1990s 16.0% 15.7% 16.3% 10
2000s 15.2% 14.4% 15.7% 10
2010s 13.7% 13.3% 14.2% 5

Countries ranked near Tanzania

  1. 28 Mali 13.8% compare
  2. 29 Burkina Faso 13.7% compare
  3. 30 Lesotho 13.5% compare
  4. 31 Kenya 13.3% compare
  5. 33 Guinea-Bissau 13.1% compare
  6. 34 Djibouti 12.9% compare
  7. 34 Guinea 12.9% compare
  8. 34 Rwanda 12.9% compare

See the full ranking of 198 places →

More reference data data for Tanzania

All data for Tanzania →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of men defined as underweight, healthy, overweight and obese in Tanzania?
Share of men defined as underweight, healthy, overweight and obese in Tanzania was 13.3% 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 Tanzania?
The highest recorded value was 16.9% in 1975.
What is the lowest share of men defined as underweight, healthy, overweight and obese recorded in Tanzania?
The lowest recorded value was 13.3% in 2014.
How does Tanzania rank for share of men defined as underweight, healthy, overweight and obese?
Tanzania ranks 31st out of 198 countries with data for 2014.
Is share of men defined as underweight, healthy, overweight and obese rising or falling in Tanzania?
Over the last ten years it is down 13.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Tanzania 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 Tanzania. Statizoid, drawing on NCD Risk Factor Collaboration (2017) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 23 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/men-weight-categories/tanzania/

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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.