What is the average BMI in Micronesia?

28.3 for men and 31.5 for women, with standard deviations of 5.5 and 6.2. Averaged across the sexes that is 29.9, against a global figure of 24.6.

What share of adults in Micronesia are overweight or obese?

Our estimate from the mean and SD: 73% of men have a BMI of 25 or more, and 38% are at 30 or more. For women it is 85% and 60%. These assume a normal curve, so the true obesity shares are likely a few points higher.

Is a BMI of 25 high in Micronesia?

A BMI of 25 is the WHO line between healthy weight and overweight. In Micronesia it is higher than about 27% of men and 15% of women. So for men here it is below the middle of the pack.

How does Micronesia compare with Kuwait?

Men in Kuwait average 29.2 against 28.3 in Micronesia; women 30.7 against 31.5. Kuwait ranks 5th, Micronesia 6th.

Average BMI in Micronesia

Men in Micronesia have an average BMI of 28.3, women 31.5. Both means fall in the WHO overweight band for men and obese for women. That puts Micronesia 6th of 186 countries in our data, ranked from highest BMI to lowest.

Key numbers

Men

28.3

Overweight

Women

31.5

Obese

SD, men / women

5.5 / 6.2

global SD

vs global mean

+3.8

women +6.7

Rank

6 of 186

1 = highest BMI

Est. obese

38% / 60%

men / women, BMI 30+

Estimated share in each WHO category

Estimated from mean and SD with a normal curve, not surveyed shares
Category	BMI	Men	Women
Underweight	under 18.5	4%	2%
Healthy weight	18.5 to 25	24%	13%
Overweight	25 to 30	35%	26%
Obese	30 and over	38%	60%

Columns may not sum to 100 because of rounding. Real BMI distributions have a longer right tail than a normal curve, so the obese share here is probably a few points low.

Micronesia among its neighbours

Ranking neighbours (three above and below) plus every Oceania country in our data
#	Country	Men	Women	Both	Region
1	Samoa	30.6	34.3	32.5	Oceania
2	Tonga	30.7	34.0	32.4	Oceania
3	Kiribati	29.2	31.3	30.3	Oceania
4	Saint Lucia	29.8	30.6	30.2	Americas
5	Kuwait	29.2	30.7	29.9	Asia
6	Micronesia	28.3	31.5	29.9	Oceania
7	Egypt	27.9	31.7	29.8	Africa
8	French Polynesia	29.7	29.6	29.6	Oceania
9	Qatar	28.9	30.4	29.6	Asia
21	New Zealand	28.3	28.1	28.2	Oceania
28	Fiji	26.8	29.0	27.9	Oceania
46	Australia	27.7	26.9	27.3	Oceania
90	Solomon Islands	25.8	27.1	26.5	Oceania
96	Vanuatu	25.7	27.0	26.4	Oceania
113	Papua New Guinea	25.4	26.0	25.7	Oceania

What a given BMI means in Micronesia

Share of adults with a lower BMI than each value, estimated from mean and SD
BMI	WHO band	Lower, men	Lower, women
20.0	Healthy weight	7%	3%
22.5	Healthy weight	15%	7%
25.0	Overweight	27%	15%
27.5	Overweight	44%	26%
30.0	Obese	62%	40%
32.5	Obese	78%	56%
35.0	Obese	89%	71%

Read it as: a man with BMI 30 in Micronesia has a higher BMI than 62% of men. Values under 1% or over 99% are shown as <1 and >99.

In plain language

The standard deviation for men in Micronesia is 5.5. About two thirds of men have a BMI between 22.8 and 33.8; for women the middle two thirds run from 25.3 to 37.7. Compared with the global mean, men here are 3.8 points higher and women 6.7 points higher.

BMI does not distinguish muscle from fat, and the WHO bands were set on European populations. For South and East Asian populations the same BMI carries more health risk, which is why several countries there use 23 and 27.5 as their own cut-offs.

Questions

What is the average BMI in Micronesia?: 28.3 for men and 31.5 for women, with standard deviations of 5.5 and 6.2. Averaged across the sexes that is 29.9, against a global figure of 24.6.
What share of adults in Micronesia are overweight or obese?: Our estimate from the mean and SD: 73% of men have a BMI of 25 or more, and 38% are at 30 or more. For women it is 85% and 60%. These assume a normal curve, so the true obesity shares are likely a few points higher.
Is a BMI of 25 high in Micronesia?: A BMI of 25 is the WHO line between healthy weight and overweight. In Micronesia it is higher than about 27% of men and 15% of women. So for men here it is below the middle of the pack.
How does Micronesia compare with Kuwait?: Men in Kuwait average 29.2 against 28.3 in Micronesia; women 30.7 against 31.5. Kuwait ranks 5th, Micronesia 6th.

NCD-RisC does not publish standard deviations. SD for countries added in 2026-10 uses the global SD. Micronesia is one of them, so the SD, the category shares and the percentiles above use the global spread rather than one measured here.

Source: NCD Risk Factor Collaboration, Lancet 2017, age-standardised mean BMI for 2016. Percentiles on this page are our estimate from a normal distribution with the stated mean and SD.

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🇫🇲Average BMI in Micronesia