Share of adults who are obese in Kuwait
Kuwait: Share of adults who are obese was 41.3% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Share of adults who are obese in Kuwait, 1980–2024
Source: World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Kuwait recorded 41.3% for share of adults who are obese in 2024.
That represents a change of up 0.1% on the previous year and up 0.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of adults who are obese in Kuwait peaked at 43.1% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 18.9%, in 1980.
Kuwait ranks 20th of 199 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 45 years of available data.
Share of adults who are obese in Kuwait, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 18.9% | — |
| 1981 | 19.5% | +3.2% |
| 1982 | 20.2% | +3.3% |
| 1983 | 20.8% | +3.4% |
| 1984 | 21.6% | +3.7% |
| 1985 | 22.5% | +3.8% |
| 1986 | 23.4% | +4.3% |
| 1987 | 24.5% | +4.7% |
| 1988 | 25.6% | +4.5% |
| 1989 | 26.7% | +4.2% |
| 1990 | 27.7% | +3.8% |
| 1991 | 28.7% | +3.7% |
| 1992 | 29.6% | +2.9% |
| 1993 | 29.9% | +1.1% |
| 1994 | 29.9% | +0.1% |
| 1995 | 30.4% | +1.4% |
| 1996 | 31.0% | +2.3% |
| 1997 | 31.7% | +2.2% |
| 1998 | 32.4% | +2.1% |
| 1999 | 33.0% | +2.0% |
| 2000 | 33.7% | +2.0% |
| 2001 | 34.3% | +1.9% |
| 2002 | 35.0% | +1.9% |
| 2003 | 35.7% | +1.9% |
| 2004 | 36.3% | +1.8% |
| 2005 | 36.8% | +1.5% |
| 2006 | 37.2% | +1.0% |
| 2007 | 37.5% | +0.8% |
| 2008 | 37.8% | +0.9% |
| 2009 | 38.2% | +1.0% |
| 2010 | 38.7% | +1.2% |
| 2011 | 39.4% | +1.7% |
| 2012 | 40.1% | +1.8% |
| 2013 | 40.7% | +1.5% |
| 2014 | 41.2% | +1.3% |
| 2015 | 41.7% | +1.2% |
| 2016 | 42.1% | +1.0% |
| 2017 | 42.4% | +0.7% |
| 2018 | 42.6% | +0.5% |
| 2019 | 42.8% | +0.6% |
| 2020 | 43.1% | +0.6% |
| 2021 | 42.0% | -2.5% |
| 2022 | 41.0% | -2.4% |
| 2023 | 41.3% | +0.7% |
| 2024 | 41.3% | +0.1% |
Kuwait compared with similar countries
- Kuwait's 41.3% is above the median for high income countries, which is 30.0%, 1.4× the median. (66 countries reporting)
- Kuwait's 41.3% is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 30.3%, 1.4× the median. (23 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 22.4% | 18.9% | 26.7% | 10 |
| 1990s | 30.4% | 27.7% | 33.0% | 10 |
| 2000s | 36.3% | 33.7% | 38.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 41.2% | 38.7% | 42.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 41.7% | 41.0% | 43.1% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Kuwait
- 17 Palau 42.1% compare
- 18 Puerto Rico 41.9% compare
- 19 United States 41.8% compare
- 21 Marshall Islands 41.2% compare
- 22 Chile 41.1% compare
- 23 Georgia 40.1% compare
More reference data data for Kuwait
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.092 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.2888 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 0.385 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.001 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 0.385 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.3086 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.1086 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 1.53 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 1.96 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0052 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of adults who are obese in Kuwait?
- Share of adults who are obese in Kuwait was 41.3% 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 adults who are obese recorded in Kuwait?
- The highest recorded value was 43.1% in 2020.
- What is the lowest share of adults who are obese recorded in Kuwait?
- The lowest recorded value was 18.9% in 1980.
- How does Kuwait rank for share of adults who are obese?
- Kuwait ranks 20th out of 199 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of adults who are obese rising or falling in Kuwait?
- Over the last ten years it is up 0.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Kuwait 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 adults who are obese. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 45 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Obesity is defined here as a body mass index (BMI) above 30. BMI is a person's weight in kilograms divided by the square of their height in meters.