Obesity rates have surged worldwide, more than tripling from 5% to nearly 16% of adults between 1990 and 2022. The latest rankings highlight which countries are most affected, with small island nations in the Pacific topping the list due to their reliance on processed foods and high rates of cardiovascular disease. Egypt, Qatar, and the United States also rank high, each facing unique challenges from food inflation, genetic predispositions, and oversized portions. This global snapshot of obesity reveals how diet and lifestyle changes are reshaping health across the world, making it clear that some countries are grappling with severe weight-related issues.

Adult obesity rates more than tripled globally between 1990 and 2022, rising from 5% to about 16% of adult population.

Pallavi Rao of Visual Capitalist maps and ranks the nations with the highest rates of adult obesity based on Body Mass Index (BMI) estimations in the infographic that follows.

The World Health Organization provided the data, which is up to date as of 2022.

Top 15 Countries Struggling with Obesity Issues

The Pacific’s small island nations have some of the highest obesity rates worldwide. Diabetes and cardiovascular disease are also prevalent there.

Most people agree that the common cause of the 20th-century diet shift—depending more on imported, processed foods—was dietary changes.

The only nations on this list with populations of more than a million are Egypt, Qatar, and the United States.

A contributing cause is once again bad eating habits, along with some cultural variations. High food inflation in Egypt has forced people to eat cheap, high-calorie meals. The government subsidizes bread, wheat flour, sugar, and cooking oil—many of which are ingredients associated with weight gain—to fight food insecurity.

Rich meals had a harsher effect in Qatar, a nation with one of the highest per capita GDPs in the world, due to a genetic propensity towards obesity and sedentary lifestyles.

Larger portions are also one of the numerous causes of widespread adult and pediatric obesity in the United States. In 2000, for instance, Americans consumed 20% more calories than they did in 1983. They now eat 195 pounds of meat a year as opposed to 138 pounds in 1953. Additionally, since 1970, their grain intake has grown by 45%.

However, it’s important to keep in mind that the BMI numbers used to create this dataset do not properly account for body types with higher bone and muscle mass.

Recently, GreatGameInternational reported that a new study involving nearly 10 million people has linked the consumption of ultra-processed foods—such as snacks, sugary cereals, and ready-to-eat meals—to 32 serious health issues, including heart disease, cancer, Type 2 diabetes, and even anxiety.