Share of children who are overweight in China
China: Share of children who are overweight was 11.1% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Share of children who are overweight in China, 2000–2024
Source: UNICEF, World Health Organization and World Bank – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in % of children aged 0-59 months.
Analysis
The most recent figure for share of children who are overweight in China is 11.1%, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 25 years on record.
That represents a change of up 6.7% on the previous year and up 54.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of children who are overweight in China peaked at 11.1% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 6.5%, in 2000.
That places China 26th out of 163 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 25 years of available data.
Share of children who are overweight in China, year by year
| Year | % of children aged 0-59 months | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 6.5% | — |
| 2001 | 6.5% | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 6.5% | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 6.5% | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 6.5% | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 6.5% | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 6.5% | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 6.5% | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 6.5% | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 6.6% | +1.5% |
| 2010 | 6.7% | +1.5% |
| 2011 | 6.8% | +1.5% |
| 2012 | 6.9% | +1.5% |
| 2013 | 7.1% | +2.9% |
| 2014 | 7.2% | +1.4% |
| 2015 | 7.4% | +2.8% |
| 2016 | 7.6% | +2.7% |
| 2017 | 7.9% | +3.9% |
| 2018 | 8.2% | +3.8% |
| 2019 | 8.5% | +3.7% |
| 2020 | 8.9% | +4.7% |
| 2021 | 9.3% | +4.5% |
| 2022 | 9.9% | +6.5% |
| 2023 | 10.4% | +5.1% |
| 2024 | 11.1% | +6.7% |
China compared with similar countries
- China's 11.1% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 7.5%, 1.5× the median. (54 countries reporting)
- China's 11.1% is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 5.5%, 2.0× the median. (27 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 6.5% | 6.5% | 6.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 7.4% | 6.7% | 8.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 9.9% | 8.9% | 11.1% | 5 |
Countries ranked near China
More reference data data for China
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 49.4 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 75.5 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 303.29 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 18.8 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 303.29 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 165.62 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 206.2 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 350.74 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 1,480 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 102.37 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of children who are overweight in China?
- Share of children who are overweight in China was 11.1% in 2024, according to UNICEF, World Health Organization and World Bank – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of children who are overweight recorded in China?
- The highest recorded value was 11.1% in 2024.
- What is the lowest share of children who are overweight recorded in China?
- The lowest recorded value was 6.5% in 2000.
- How does China rank for share of children who are overweight?
- China ranks 26th out of 163 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of children who are overweight rising or falling in China?
- Over the last ten years it is up 54.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this China data come from?
- The figures come from UNICEF, World Health Organization and World Bank – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of children who are overweight. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 25 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Proportion of children moderately or severely overweight (%).