Malnutrition: Prevalence of childhood stunting, male vs. female in United Kingdom
United Kingdom: Malnutrition: Prevalence of childhood stunting, male vs. female was 1.8% in 2019. ▼ Falling
Malnutrition: Prevalence of childhood stunting, male vs. female in United Kingdom, 2007–2019
Source: Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME) - UNICEF, WHO, and World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in % of children under 5.
Analysis
United Kingdom recorded 1.8% for malnutrition: prevalence of childhood stunting, male vs. female in 2019.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 5.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, malnutrition: prevalence of childhood stunting, male vs. female in United Kingdom peaked at 2.2% in 2007 and was at its lowest, 0.9%, in 2011.
That places United Kingdom 82nd out of 83 countries with data for 2019, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 13 years of available data.
Malnutrition: Prevalence of childhood stunting, male vs. female in United Kingdom, year by year
| Year | % of children under 5 | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2007 | 2.2% | — |
| 2008 | 2.0% | -9.1% |
| 2009 | 1.9% | -5.0% |
| 2010 | 2.0% | +5.3% |
| 2011 | 0.9% | -55.0% |
| 2012 | 1.9% | +111.1% |
| 2013 | 2.0% | +5.3% |
| 2014 | 1.9% | -5.0% |
| 2015 | 2.0% | +5.3% |
| 2016 | 1.8% | -10.0% |
| 2017 | 1.8% | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 1.8% | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 1.8% | +0.0% |
United Kingdom compared with similar countries
- United Kingdom's 1.8% is below the median for high income countries, which is 5.5%, 32% of the median. (8 countries reporting)
- United Kingdom's 1.8% is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 7.3%, 25% of the median. (8 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Malnutrition: Prevalence of childhood stunting, male vs. female in United Kingdom changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | +111.1% | 0.9% | 1.9% |
| 2011 | -55.0% | 2.0% | 0.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 2.0% | 1.9% | 2.2% | 3 |
| 2010s | 1.8% | 0.9% | 2.0% | 10 |
Countries ranked near United Kingdom
- 79 Uzbekistan 6.0% compare
- 80 Kuwait 3.8% compare
- 81 United States 2.8% compare
- 83 Korea 0.8% compare
More gender data for United Kingdom
- Child population (UN estimates and projections) 11,226 (2030)
- Child population (UN estimates and projections) (0-14), annual growth -0.9161 % change on previous year (2030)
- Population 60,060 (2030)
- Working-age population (UN estimates and projections) 60,060 (2030)
- Population (UN estimates and projections), annual growth rate 0.7034 % change on previous year (2030)
- Age population, age 00, female, interpolated 335,907 (2025)
- Age population, age 00, male, interpolated 353,938 (2025)
- Age population, age 01, female, interpolated 340,922 (2025)
- Age population, age 01, male, interpolated 359,075 (2025)
- Age population, age 02, female, interpolated 343,706 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is malnutrition: prevalence of childhood stunting, male vs. female in United Kingdom?
- Malnutrition: prevalence of childhood stunting, male vs. female in United Kingdom was 1.8% in 2019, according to Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME) - UNICEF, WHO, and World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest malnutrition: prevalence of childhood stunting, male vs. female recorded in United Kingdom?
- The highest recorded value was 2.2% in 2007.
- What is the lowest malnutrition: prevalence of childhood stunting, male vs. female recorded in United Kingdom?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.9% in 2011.
- How does United Kingdom rank for malnutrition: prevalence of childhood stunting, male vs. female?
- United Kingdom ranks 82nd out of 83 countries with data for 2019.
- Is malnutrition: prevalence of childhood stunting, male vs. female rising or falling in United Kingdom?
- Over the last ten years it is down 5.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this United Kingdom data come from?
- The figures come from Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME) - UNICEF, WHO, and World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Malnutrition: Prevalence of childhood stunting, male vs. female. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 13 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Share of children younger than 5 years, male versus female, that fall below two standard deviations from the median height-for-age of the WHO Child Growth Standards.