Malnutrition: Share of children who are wasted in United States
United States: Malnutrition: Share of children who are wasted was 0.1% in 2022. ◆ Volatile
Malnutrition: Share of children who are wasted in United States, 1991–2022
Source: Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME) - UNICEF, WHO, and World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in % of children under 5.
Analysis
In 2022, malnutrition: share of children who are wasted in United States stood at 0.1%. That is the lowest value across all 12 years on record.
That represents a change of down 66.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, malnutrition: share of children who are wasted in United States peaked at 0.9% in 2006 and was at its lowest, 0.1%, in 2010.
United States ranks 99th of 99 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Malnutrition: Share of children who are wasted in United States, year by year
| Year | % of children under 5 | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 0.5% | — |
| 2000 | 0.5% | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 0.3% | -40.0% |
| 2004 | 0.7% | +133.3% |
| 2006 | 0.9% | +28.6% |
| 2008 | 0.6% | -33.3% |
| 2010 | 0.1% | -83.3% |
| 2012 | 0.3% | +200.0% |
| 2014 | 0.3% | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 0.4% | +33.3% |
| 2018 | 0.1% | -75.0% |
| 2022 | 0.1% | +0.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 0.5% | 0.5% | 0.5% | 1 |
| 2000s | 0.6% | 0.3% | 0.9% | 5 |
| 2010s | 0.2% | 0.1% | 0.4% | 5 |
| 2020s | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 1 |
Countries ranked near United States
- 96 United Kingdom 0.4% compare
- 97 Chile 0.3% compare
- 98 South Korea 0.2% compare
More reference data data for United States
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 19.34 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 24.55 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 119.42 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 20.7 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 119.42 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 64.85 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 52.14 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 133.45 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 589.96 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 112.69 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is malnutrition: share of children who are wasted in United States?
- Malnutrition: share of children who are wasted in United States was 0.1% in 2022, according to Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME) - UNICEF, WHO, and World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest malnutrition: share of children who are wasted recorded in United States?
- The highest recorded value was 0.9% in 2006.
- What is the lowest malnutrition: share of children who are wasted recorded in United States?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.1% in 2010.
- How does United States rank for malnutrition: share of children who are wasted?
- United States ranks 99th out of 99 countries with data for 2022.
- Is malnutrition: share of children who are wasted rising or falling in United States?
- Over the last ten years it is down 66.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this United States data come from?
- The figures come from Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME) - UNICEF, WHO, and World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Malnutrition: Share of children who are wasted. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 12 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
The share of children younger than five years old that are defined as "wasted". Wasting is when a child’s weight is significantly lower than the average for their height, for example, because of acute food shortage or disease.