Share of men who are obese in Iraq
Iraq: Share of men who are obese was 31.2% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Share of men who are obese in Iraq, 1980–2024
Source: World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2024, share of men who are obese in Iraq stood at 31.2%. That is the highest value across all 45 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.8% on the previous year and up 11.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of men who are obese in Iraq peaked at 31.2% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 9.0%, in 1980.
Iraq ranks 34th 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 men who are obese in Iraq, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 9.0% | — |
| 1981 | 9.3% | +4.0% |
| 1982 | 9.7% | +4.1% |
| 1983 | 10.1% | +4.1% |
| 1984 | 10.5% | +4.2% |
| 1985 | 11.0% | +4.1% |
| 1986 | 11.4% | +4.2% |
| 1987 | 11.9% | +4.1% |
| 1988 | 12.4% | +4.1% |
| 1989 | 12.9% | +4.1% |
| 1990 | 13.4% | +4.0% |
| 1991 | 14.0% | +4.0% |
| 1992 | 14.5% | +3.9% |
| 1993 | 15.1% | +3.8% |
| 1994 | 15.6% | +3.8% |
| 1995 | 16.2% | +3.7% |
| 1996 | 16.8% | +3.7% |
| 1997 | 17.4% | +3.7% |
| 1998 | 18.1% | +3.7% |
| 1999 | 18.7% | +3.6% |
| 2000 | 19.4% | +3.6% |
| 2001 | 20.1% | +3.5% |
| 2002 | 20.8% | +3.4% |
| 2003 | 21.5% | +3.3% |
| 2004 | 22.1% | +3.2% |
| 2005 | 22.8% | +3.0% |
| 2006 | 23.5% | +2.9% |
| 2007 | 24.1% | +2.7% |
| 2008 | 24.7% | +2.7% |
| 2009 | 25.4% | +2.5% |
| 2010 | 26.0% | +2.4% |
| 2011 | 26.5% | +2.2% |
| 2012 | 27.1% | +2.1% |
| 2013 | 27.6% | +1.9% |
| 2014 | 28.1% | +1.8% |
| 2015 | 28.6% | +1.7% |
| 2016 | 29.0% | +1.6% |
| 2017 | 29.4% | +1.3% |
| 2018 | 29.7% | +1.0% |
| 2019 | 30.0% | +0.9% |
| 2020 | 30.2% | +0.8% |
| 2021 | 30.5% | +0.8% |
| 2022 | 30.7% | +0.8% |
| 2023 | 31.0% | +0.8% |
| 2024 | 31.2% | +0.8% |
Iraq compared with similar countries
- Iraq's 31.2% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 20.7%, 1.5× the median. (58 countries reporting)
- Iraq's 31.2% is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 25.5%, 1.2× the median. (23 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 10.8% | 9.0% | 12.9% | 10 |
| 1990s | 16.0% | 13.4% | 18.7% | 10 |
| 2000s | 22.4% | 19.4% | 25.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | 28.2% | 26.0% | 30.0% | 10 |
| 2020s | 30.7% | 30.2% | 31.2% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Iraq
More reference data data for Iraq
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.2116 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 3.19 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 7.23 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.3911 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 7.23 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.7096 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.235 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 13.21 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 30.36 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 2.13 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of men who are obese in Iraq?
- Share of men who are obese in Iraq was 31.2% 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 men who are obese recorded in Iraq?
- The highest recorded value was 31.2% in 2024.
- What is the lowest share of men who are obese recorded in Iraq?
- The lowest recorded value was 9.0% in 1980.
- How does Iraq rank for share of men who are obese?
- Iraq ranks 34th out of 199 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of men who are obese rising or falling in Iraq?
- Over the last ten years it is up 11.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Iraq 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 men 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 as having a body-mass index (BMI) equal to, or greater than, 30. BMI is a person's weight (in kilograms) divided by their height (in meters) squared.