Share of women who are overweight or obese in Ireland
Ireland: Share of women who are overweight or obese was 61.0% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Share of women who are overweight or obese in Ireland, 1980–2024
Source: World Health Organization - Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Ireland recorded 61.0% for share of women who are overweight or obese in 2024. That is the highest value across all 45 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.6% on the previous year and up 6.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of women who are overweight or obese in Ireland peaked at 61.0% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 34.6%, in 1980.
Ireland ranks 77th of 199 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 45 years of available data.
Share of women who are overweight or obese in Ireland, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 34.6% | — |
| 1981 | 35.4% | +2.1% |
| 1982 | 36.1% | +2.1% |
| 1983 | 36.9% | +2.1% |
| 1984 | 37.7% | +2.1% |
| 1985 | 38.4% | +2.1% |
| 1986 | 39.2% | +2.0% |
| 1987 | 40.0% | +2.0% |
| 1988 | 40.8% | +2.0% |
| 1989 | 41.6% | +1.9% |
| 1990 | 42.4% | +1.9% |
| 1991 | 43.2% | +1.9% |
| 1992 | 44.0% | +1.9% |
| 1993 | 44.8% | +1.8% |
| 1994 | 45.6% | +1.8% |
| 1995 | 46.4% | +1.8% |
| 1996 | 47.2% | +1.7% |
| 1997 | 48.0% | +1.7% |
| 1998 | 48.8% | +1.6% |
| 1999 | 49.6% | +1.5% |
| 2000 | 50.3% | +1.5% |
| 2001 | 51.0% | +1.4% |
| 2002 | 51.6% | +1.3% |
| 2003 | 52.2% | +1.2% |
| 2004 | 52.8% | +1.1% |
| 2005 | 53.4% | +1.0% |
| 2006 | 53.9% | +1.0% |
| 2007 | 54.4% | +0.9% |
| 2008 | 54.8% | +0.9% |
| 2009 | 55.3% | +0.8% |
| 2010 | 55.7% | +0.8% |
| 2011 | 56.1% | +0.7% |
| 2012 | 56.5% | +0.7% |
| 2013 | 56.9% | +0.7% |
| 2014 | 57.3% | +0.7% |
| 2015 | 57.7% | +0.7% |
| 2016 | 58.1% | +0.7% |
| 2017 | 58.5% | +0.7% |
| 2018 | 58.9% | +0.7% |
| 2019 | 59.2% | +0.6% |
| 2020 | 59.6% | +0.6% |
| 2021 | 60.0% | +0.6% |
| 2022 | 60.3% | +0.6% |
| 2023 | 60.7% | +0.6% |
| 2024 | 61.0% | +0.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 38.1% | 34.6% | 41.6% | 10 |
| 1990s | 46.0% | 42.4% | 49.6% | 10 |
| 2000s | 53.0% | 50.3% | 55.3% | 10 |
| 2010s | 57.5% | 55.7% | 59.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 60.3% | 59.6% | 61.0% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Ireland
More gender data for Ireland
- Child population (UN estimates and projections) 899.27 (2030)
- Child population (UN estimates and projections) (0-14), annual growth -0.9809 % change on previous year (2030)
- Age population, age 00, female, interpolated 26,039 (2025)
- Age population, age 00, male, interpolated 27,455 (2025)
- Age population, age 01, female, interpolated 26,494 (2025)
- Age population, age 01, male, interpolated 27,919 (2025)
- Age population, age 02, female, interpolated 26,943 (2025)
- Age population, age 02, male, interpolated 28,390 (2025)
- Age population, age 03, female, interpolated 28,907 (2025)
- Age population, age 03, male, interpolated 30,454 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of women who are overweight or obese in Ireland?
- Share of women who are overweight or obese in Ireland was 61.0% in 2024, according to World Health Organization - Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of women who are overweight or obese recorded in Ireland?
- The highest recorded value was 61.0% in 2024.
- What is the lowest share of women who are overweight or obese recorded in Ireland?
- The lowest recorded value was 34.6% in 1980.
- How does Ireland rank for share of women who are overweight or obese?
- Ireland ranks 77th out of 199 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of women who are overweight or obese rising or falling in Ireland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 6.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Ireland data come from?
- The figures come from World Health Organization - Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of women who are overweight or obese. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 45 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
A person is defined as overweight if they have a body-mass index (BMI) equal to or greater than 25. BMI is a person's weight in kilograms divided by his height in meters squared.