Obesity in Japan
Obesity in Japan is a major public health concern, but is also the lowest among high-income countries. Writer Johann Hari described Japan as "the land that doesn't need Ozempic" in 2024.
Prevalence
The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare published the following statistics in 2024 from the National Health and Nutrition Survey 2019.Note: Unlike many other areas, Japan defines obesity as having a BMI over 25, rather than over 30.
| Group | "low weight" | "normal weight" | "obese" ** |
| Male, 15-19 | 16.3% | 78.3% | 5.4% |
| Male, 20-29 | 6.7% | 70.1% | 23.1% |
| Male, 30-39 | 5.1% | 65.5% | 29.4% |
| Male, 40-49 | 1.7% | 58.6% | 39.7% |
| Male, 50-59 | 2.4% | 58.4% | 39.2% |
| Male, 60-69 | 4.0% | 60.5% | 35.4% |
| Male, 70+ | 4.5% | 67.0% | 28.5% |
| Female, 15-19 | 21.0% | 76.5% | 2.5% |
| Female, 20-29 | 20.7% | 70.4% | 8.9% |
| Female, 30-39 | 16.4% | 68.7% | 15.0% |
| Female, 40-49 | 12.9% | 70.5% | 16.6% |
| Female, 50-59 | 10.6% | 68.7% | 20.7% |
| Female, 60-69 | 9.4% | 62.5% | 28.1% |
| Female, 70+ | 9.7% | 63.9% | 26.4% |
A 2025 study of over 8 million adults found that average BMI had increased from 2015 to 2020, especially in younger and middle aged adults.