Share of adults who are overweight or obese in Barbados
Barbados: Share of adults who are overweight or obese was 68.2% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Share of adults who are overweight or obese in Barbados, 1980–2024
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 adults who are overweight or obese in Barbados is 68.2%, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 45 years on record.
The figure is up 0.6% on the previous year and up 7.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of adults who are overweight or obese in Barbados peaked at 68.2% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 41.8%, in 1980.
Barbados ranks 36th of 199 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 45 years of available data.
Share of adults who are overweight or obese in Barbados, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 41.8% | — |
| 1981 | 42.4% | +1.3% |
| 1982 | 42.9% | +1.4% |
| 1983 | 43.5% | +1.4% |
| 1984 | 44.1% | +1.4% |
| 1985 | 44.7% | +1.4% |
| 1986 | 45.4% | +1.4% |
| 1987 | 46.0% | +1.4% |
| 1988 | 46.6% | +1.4% |
| 1989 | 47.3% | +1.4% |
| 1990 | 47.9% | +1.3% |
| 1991 | 48.5% | +1.3% |
| 1992 | 49.1% | +1.3% |
| 1993 | 49.8% | +1.3% |
| 1994 | 50.4% | +1.3% |
| 1995 | 51.1% | +1.3% |
| 1996 | 51.8% | +1.4% |
| 1997 | 52.5% | +1.4% |
| 1998 | 53.2% | +1.4% |
| 1999 | 53.9% | +1.4% |
| 2000 | 54.7% | +1.4% |
| 2001 | 55.4% | +1.3% |
| 2002 | 56.1% | +1.3% |
| 2003 | 56.8% | +1.3% |
| 2004 | 57.5% | +1.2% |
| 2005 | 58.2% | +1.2% |
| 2006 | 58.9% | +1.1% |
| 2007 | 59.5% | +1.1% |
| 2008 | 60.1% | +1.1% |
| 2009 | 60.7% | +1.0% |
| 2010 | 61.3% | +1.0% |
| 2011 | 61.9% | +0.9% |
| 2012 | 62.4% | +0.9% |
| 2013 | 63.0% | +0.9% |
| 2014 | 63.5% | +0.8% |
| 2015 | 64.0% | +0.8% |
| 2016 | 64.5% | +0.8% |
| 2017 | 65.0% | +0.8% |
| 2018 | 65.5% | +0.7% |
| 2019 | 66.0% | +0.7% |
| 2020 | 66.4% | +0.7% |
| 2021 | 66.9% | +0.7% |
| 2022 | 67.3% | +0.7% |
| 2023 | 67.8% | +0.7% |
| 2024 | 68.2% | +0.6% |
Barbados compared with similar countries
- Barbados's 68.2% is above the median for high income countries, which is 60.3%, 1.1× the median. (66 countries reporting)
- Barbados's 68.2% is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 66.0%, 1.0× the median. (34 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 44.5% | 41.8% | 47.3% | 10 |
| 1990s | 50.8% | 47.9% | 53.9% | 10 |
| 2000s | 57.8% | 54.7% | 60.7% | 10 |
| 2010s | 63.7% | 61.3% | 66.0% | 10 |
| 2020s | 67.3% | 66.4% | 68.2% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Barbados
More reference data data for Barbados
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.0268 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.0217 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 0.0558 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 0.0558 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.09 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.0377 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.118 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 0.2758 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0001 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of adults who are overweight or obese in Barbados?
- Share of adults who are overweight or obese in Barbados was 68.2% 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 overweight or obese recorded in Barbados?
- The highest recorded value was 68.2% in 2024.
- What is the lowest share of adults who are overweight or obese recorded in Barbados?
- The lowest recorded value was 41.8% in 1980.
- How does Barbados rank for share of adults who are overweight or obese?
- Barbados ranks 36th out of 199 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of adults who are overweight or obese rising or falling in Barbados?
- Over the last ten years it is up 7.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Barbados 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 overweight or 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
Overweight is defined here as a body mass index (BMI) above 25. BMI is a person's weight in kilograms divided by the square of their height in meters.