What percent of the population is skinny?
Olivia Hensley
Updated on February 23, 2026
The proportion of underweight people fell from 14 percent to 9 percent of men and from 15 percent to 10 percent of women, according to the study. Global obesity rates among men went up from 3.2 percent in 1975 to 10.8 percent, while among women they rose from 6.4 percent in 1975 to 14.9 percent.