Albania among the countries with the highest obesity rates in Europe!
The percentage of people aged 16 and older considered overweight (pre-obese and obese) in 2022 was 50.6% in the European Union, according to the latest updated data from Eurostat.
The data also includes Albania, where 56.5% of individuals over 16 years old are categorized as overweight. With this figure, Albania ranks 11th and is considered one of the European countries with the highest levels of obesity, marked in blue on the map.
The most overweight population in Europe is found in Malta, where 62% of the population is classified as overweight. Following Malta are Finland (59.5%), Latvia (59.2%), Romania (58.9%), Lithuania (58.5%), Poland (57.8%), Hungary (57.5%), Slovakia (57.5%), Croatia (57.2%), Turkey (57.1%), and then Albania (56.5%).
On the other end of the spectrum, Italians are the slimmest in Europe, with the lowest obesity rate at 41.3%, followed by the Swiss (45.2%) and the French (45.4%).
In the Balkan region, Montenegro leads in terms of slimness, with one of the lowest rates in Europe at 47%. Serbia’s rate stands at 51.8%, while data for other regional countries are unavailable. North Macedonia reported a rate of 55% back in 2017.
Albanian Men More Overweight Than Women
Albanian women appear to be more mindful of their weight compared to men. According to Eurostat, 62.3% of Albanian men over the age of 16 are classified as overweight, placing them among the highest in Europe. The countries with the highest rates of overweight men are Malta and Slovakia (69.4%), while the slimmest men are in France (51.5%).
In comparison, 50.9% of Albanian women are considered overweight, based on Eurostat data. The slimmest women in Europe are Italians (31.3%) and Montenegrins (34.6%). Meanwhile, the countries with the highest percentage of overweight women are Latvia (56.7%) and Turkey (55.2%).
Eurostat assesses obesity using the Body Mass Index (BMI), a widely accepted measure to classify individuals based on their body composition—muscle, fat, and bone mass—in relation to their height.
BMI categories include:
- Underweight: BMI less than 18.5
- Normal weight: BMI between 18.5 and less than 25
- Pre-obese: BMI between 25 and less than 30
- Obese: BMI equal to or greater than 30
Individuals with a BMI of 25 or higher are considered overweight, encompassing both the pre-obese and obese categories. For those aged 18 and above, a BMI of 30 or more qualifies as obese.
CREATED by:
“KORÇA BOOM”
