Global Child Obesity in Boys by Country (2022)

Childhood obesity continues to be a pressing global health issue, affecting millions of children across diverse socioeconomic backgrounds. In 2022, newly released data revealed significant disparities in obesity rates among boys across 200 countries. These insights are critical for understanding where interventions are most needed.

Top Countries with Highest Childhood Obesity Rates (2022)

According to the data, Niue tops the list with an alarming 32% prevalence of obesity in boys, followed closely by Palau and the Cook Islands at 28%. These Pacific Island nations have consistently reported high obesity rates due to shifts in diet, reduced physical activity, and limited access to healthier food options.

Other countries with notably high child obesity prevalence include:

• Chile – 22%
• Tonga – 22%
• Mexico – 18%
• United States – 16%
• Argentina – 16%
• New Zealand – 15%

In many of these countries, lifestyle changes, increased processed food consumption, and reduced outdoor activity have contributed to the growing epidemic.

Lowest Childhood Obesity Rates

At the other end of the spectrum, over 40 countries reported 0% prevalence, including:

• Ethiopia
• Senegal
• Nepal
• Burundi
• Tanzania
• Burkina Faso

These nations, predominantly in Sub-Saharan Africa and parts of Asia, still face undernutrition as a major concern, though rising urbanization may change this trajectory in coming years.

Canada and Other Developed Nations

• Canada ranked 67th with 8% prevalence among boys.
• United Kingdom and Italy both stood at 9% and 8% respectively.
• Japan, known for its healthy traditional diet, reported a relatively low rate of 5%.

These figures highlight the importance of national policy and cultural lifestyle in combating childhood obesity.

Ranking: Obesity in Children (Boys) by Country (2022)

Rank	Country	Prevalence obesity in boys
1	Niue	32%
2	Palau	28%
3	Cook Islands	28%
4	Nauru	23%
5	Chile	22%
6	Tonga	22%
7	Tokelau	21%
8	Brunei Darussalam	18%
9	Mexico	18%
10	Tuvalu	18%
11	French Polynesia	17%
12	South Korea	17%
13	Peru	17%
14	United States of America	16%
15	Argentina	16%
16	New Zealand	15%
17	United Arab Emirates	15%
18	Seychelles	15%
19	Qatar	15%
20	Jordan	14%
21	Uruguay	14%
22	Kuwait	14%
23	Brazil	14%
24	Hungary	13%
25	American Samoa	13%
26	Malaysia	13%
27	Bahrain	13%
28	Cuba	13%
29	Oman	13%
30	Australia	12%
31	Thailand	12%
32	Bahamas	12%
33	Slovenia	11%
34	China	11%
35	Finland	11%
36	Cyprus	11%
37	Iran	11%
38	Saudi Arabia	11%
39	Saint Kitts and Nevis	11%
40	Egypt	11%
41	Ecuador	11%
42	Greece	10%
43	Estonia	10%
44	Bulgaria	10%
45	Serbia	10%
46	Austria	10%
47	Taiwan	10%
48	Montenegro	10%
49	Barbados	9%
50	United Kingdom	9%
51	Panama	9%
52	Malta	9%
53	State of Palestine	9%
54	Trinidad and Tobago	9%
55	Marshall Islands	9%
56	Spain	9%
57	Mauritius	9%
58	Singapore	9%
59	Bolivia	9%
60	Paraguay	9%
61	Maldives	9%
62	North Macedonia	9%
63	Samoa	9%
64	Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	9%
65	Antigua and Barbuda	8%
66	Kiribati	8%
67	Canada	8%
68	Lebanon	8%
69	Sweden	8%
70	Romania	8%
71	Belize	8%
72	Italy	8%
73	Saint Lucia	8%
74	Fiji	8%
75	Georgia	8%
76	Costa Rica	8%
77	Croatia	8%
78	Federated States of Micronesia	7%
79	Israel	7%
80	Dominican Republic	7%
81	Slovakia	7%
82	Indonesia	7%
83	Suriname	7%
84	Armenia	7%
85	Ireland	6%
86	Venezuela	6%
87	Bosnia and Herzegovina	6%
88	Portugal	6%
89	Switzerland	6%
90	Germany	6%
91	Pakistan	6%
92	Poland	6%
93	Guatemala	6%
94	Albania	6%
95	Iraq	6%
96	Colombia	6%
97	Dominica	6%
98	Turkiye	6%
99	Liberia	6%
100	El Salvador	6%
101	Puerto Rico	5%
102	Algeria	5%
103	Viet Nam	5%
104	Grenada	5%
105	Bermuda	5%
106	Denmark	5%
107	Haiti	5%
108	Russian Federation	5%
109	Libya	5%
110	Latvia	5%
111	Ghana	5%
112	Jamaica	5%
113	Czechia	5%
114	Papua New Guinea	5%
115	Japan	5%
116	Belgium	5%
117	Philippines	5%
118	Kazakhstan	4%
119	Solomon Islands	4%
120	Norway	4%
121	Lithuania	4%
122	Ukraine	4%
123	Syrian Arab Republic	4%
124	Guyana	3%
125	Vanuatu	3%
126	Mongolia	3%
127	Yemen	3%
128	Honduras	3%
129	Tunisia	3%
130	Morocco	3%
131	Nicaragua	3%
132	Sri Lanka	3%
133	South Africa	3%
134	Uganda	3%
135	Belarus	3%
136	Andorra	3%
137	India	3%
138	Myanmar	2%
139	Cambodia	2%
140	Afghanistan	2%
141	North Korea	2%
142	Sudan	2%
143	Netherlands	2%
144	France	2%
145	Iceland	2%
146	Niger	1%
147	Azerbaijan	1%
148	Turkmenistan	1%
149	Lao PDR	1%
150	Moldova	1%
151	Luxembourg	1%
152	Bhutan	1%
153	Uzbekistan	1%
154	Eswatini	1%
155	Benin	1%
156	Nigeria	1%
157	Kyrgyzstan	1%
158	Sao Tome and Principe	1%
159	Botswana	1%
160	Cote d’Ivoire	1%
161	Greenland	1%
162	Zambia	1%
163	Bangladesh	1%
164	Mauritania	1%
165	Kenya	1%
166	Angola	1%
167	Mali	1%
168	South Sudan	1%
169	Namibia	1%
170	Tajikistan	1%
171	DR Congo	1%
172	Gabon	0%
173	Ethiopia	0%
174	Equatorial Guinea	0%
175	Togo	0%
176	Chad	0%
177	Central African Republic	0%
178	Gambia	0%
179	Guinea Bissau	0%
180	Lesotho	0%
181	Sierra Leone	0%
182	Cameroon	0%
183	Zimbabwe	0%
184	Somalia	0%
185	Congo	0%
186	Mozambique	0%
187	Cabo Verde	0%
188	Guinea	0%
189	Djibouti	0%
190	Comoros	0%
191	Malawi	0%
192	Madagascar	0%
193	Senegal	0%
194	Burundi	0%
195	Eritrea	0%
196	Tanzania	0%
197	Nepal	0%
198	Timor-Leste	0%
199	Rwanda	0%
200	Burkina Faso	0%

Source:

NCD-RisC, National Adult Body-Mass Index