Overview

• UNICEF reports that 9.4% of 5- to 19-year-olds are living with obesity compared with 9.2% who are underweight, marking a reversal since 2000 when obesity was about 3% and underweight about 13%.
• The analysis draws on data from more than 190 countries, estimating roughly 391 million children and adolescents are overweight and 188 million are obese.
• The trend excludes Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, while high-income countries show high prevalence, including 27% in Chile and 21% in both the United States and the United Arab Emirates.
• UNICEF notes particularly severe rates in several Pacific island nations where more than one third of youths are obese, and reports Germany remains roughly stable at about 25% overweight and 8% obesity among 5- to 19-year-olds.
• UNICEF cites the availability and digital marketing of processed foods as major drivers and highlights Mexico’s ban on selling such products in public schools as a model policy benefiting more than 34 million children.