NationMaster - Obesity (most recent) by country

Rank	Countries	Amount (top to bottom)
#1	United States:	30.6%
#2	Mexico:	24.2%
#3	United Kingdom:	23%
#4	Slovakia:	22.4%
#5	Greece:	21.9%
#6	Australia:	21.7%
#7	New Zealand:	20.9%
#8	Hungary:	18.8%
#9	Luxembourg:	18.4%
#10	Czech Republic:	14.8%
#11	Canada:	14.3%
#12	Spain:	13.1%
#13	Ireland:	13%
#14	Germany:	12.9%
#15	Portugal:	12.8%
#16	Finland:	12.8%
#17	Iceland:	12.4%
#18	Turkey:	12%
#19	Belgium:	11.7%
#20	Netherlands:	10%
#21	Sweden:	9.7%
#22	Denmark:	9.5%
#23	France:	9.4%
#24	Austria:	9.1%
#25	Italy:	8.5%
#26	Norway:	8.3%
#27	Switzerland:	7.7%
#28	Japan:	3.2%
#29	Korea, South:	3.2%
	Weighted average:	14.1%

DEFINITION: Percentage of total population who have a BMI (body mass index) greater than 30 Kg/sq.meters (Data for Australia, Austria and Portugal is from 2002. All other data is from 2003). Obesity rates are defined as the percentage of the population with a Body Mass Index (BMI) over 30. The BMI is a single number that evaluates an individual's weight status in relation to height (weight/height2, with weight in kilograms and height in metres). For Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States, figures are based on health examinations, rather than self-reported information. Obesity estimates derived from health examinations are generally higher and more reliable than those coming from self-reports, because they preclude any misreporting of people's height and weight. However, health examinations are only conducted regularly in a few countries (OECD).

SOURCE: OECD Health Data 2005

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COMMENTARY

Eddie 7th April 2005	The US has the most overweight people but per capita, Austria has the most. The US comes in 5th or so...big population, big land mass. The only other countries that can compare to the USA are China, India, Brazil, and the EU as a whole. Nobody else has a population to land mass ratio resembling the US.
Rotten 2nd May 2005	According to the original OECD report, the US had 30% of its population meeting the OECD standard for obesity.
lee (Korea, South) 24th May 2006	Korean is very thin. I think a food custom decides obesity.
Jaff (UK) 19th December 2006	Statistics don't lie - Yanks eat too much, make war too much & waste too much. Eddie, you seem to be in denaial.
Brett (Guam) 7th April 2007	Eddie is an idiot. Everything he just said is stupid. I bet he is fat.
Hannah (UK) 12th May 2007	Land mass? yes it is a large country and that is why the statistics use PERCENTAGES not totals. And 'population to land mass ratio'? Why does the number of people compared to the size of the land they live on make a direct difference?
Patrick (Australia) 29th June 2007	Eddie, your an absolute fool. I believe the statistics here refer to a per capita measure. Hence the "%" symbol. And if you didnt realise, the Australian population (just over 20 million) to land mass ratio far outweighs the US. If it didnt, then the US would have to be 10x the size of Aus. But wait a minute, that statistic has absolutely no relevance in this argument of obesity. Gosh, Americans must be stupid as well as fat.
Roobah (Utah) 12th July 2007	Japanese and Koreans tend NOT to drive -- they walk a LOT. I bet that helps!
roobah (Utah) 12th July 2007	Bill says "Practising physicians Correct spelling Practicing c not s" Bill, depends upon where you are located. BOTH are correct, check the dictionary.
Moni (US) 6th September 2007	Jason from California is spot on. What they should show is % of body fat, not BMI. I am not disputing that the US should be on the top of the list; one look at our people and it's obvious there is a serious problem here. But what surprised me was, for example, the ranking for Greece. I just got back from holidays there and I was all over the country, and I saw very few fat people compared to back home in the US. BMI is misleading and a BMI of 30+ does not always equal obesity.
Joe Mama (Planet Earth) 18th September 2007	Come on guys, before you jump to conclusions and say someone must be fat, stupid, or an idiot, remember that your own comments can make you seem the same. Who's in denial?
Sydneyrooster (Sydney, Australia) 20th June 2008	BMI is misleading. Can you imagine Schwarzenegger's BMI after all the years of bodybuilding? A healthy NFL, Canadian FL, Rugby Union or Rugby League player will also have a BMI over 30. And bodybuilders will also be denser in mass because muscle is denser than adipose tissue (fat).

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Health Statistics > Obesity (most recent) by country

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