Malnutrition: Number of children who are wasted in Bangladesh
Bangladesh: Malnutrition: Number of children who are wasted was 1.74 million in 2022. ▼ Falling
Malnutrition: Number of children who are wasted in Bangladesh, 1986–2022
Source: World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
Analysis
Bangladesh recorded 1.74 million for malnutrition: number of children who are wasted in 2022.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 12.9% on the previous year and down 1.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, malnutrition: number of children who are wasted in Bangladesh peaked at 3.51 million in 1997 and was at its lowest, 1.31 million, in 2018.
Bangladesh ranks 5th of 99 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 27 years of available data.
Malnutrition: Number of children who are wasted in Bangladesh, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1986 | 3.00 million | — |
| 1990 | 3.04 million | +1.4% |
| 1991 | 2.63 million | -13.6% |
| 1992 | 2.76 million | +5.1% |
| 1993 | 2.38 million | -13.6% |
| 1994 | 2.83 million | +18.6% |
| 1995 | 2.54 million | -10.0% |
| 1996 | 2.61 million | +2.5% |
| 1997 | 3.51 million | +34.4% |
| 1998 | 2.58 million | -26.6% |
| 1999 | 2.39 million | -7.2% |
| 2000 | 2.22 million | -7.2% |
| 2001 | 2.29 million | +3.3% |
| 2002 | 2.26 million | -1.2% |
| 2003 | 2.29 million | +1.3% |
| 2004 | 2.68 million | +16.8% |
| 2005 | 2.65 million | -1.2% |
| 2006 | 2.15 million | -18.8% |
| 2007 | 3.12 million | +45.0% |
| 2011 | 2.58 million | -17.1% |
| 2012 | 1.77 million | -31.5% |
| 2013 | 1.52 million | -14.4% |
| 2014 | 2.24 million | +47.8% |
| 2015 | 1.54 million | -31.1% |
| 2018 | 1.31 million | -14.9% |
| 2019 | 1.54 million | +17.7% |
| 2022 | 1.74 million | +12.9% |
Bangladesh compared with similar countries
- Bangladesh's 1.74 million is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 112,895, 15.4× the median. (38 countries reporting)
- Bangladesh's 1.74 million is above the median for South Asia, which is 173,615, 10.0× the median. (6 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 3.00 million | 3.00 million | 3.00 million | 1 |
| 1990s | 2.73 million | 2.38 million | 3.51 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 2.46 million | 2.15 million | 3.12 million | 8 |
| 2010s | 1.79 million | 1.31 million | 2.58 million | 7 |
| 2020s | 1.74 million | 1.74 million | 1.74 million | 1 |
Countries ranked near Bangladesh
More environment data for Bangladesh
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -2.59 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -2.3 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.236 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.67 °C (2025)
- Wood-based panels — Production, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 2.31 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per unit 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), annual growth rate -2.43 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is malnutrition: number of children who are wasted in Bangladesh?
- Malnutrition: number of children who are wasted in Bangladesh was 1.74 million in 2022, according to World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest malnutrition: number of children who are wasted recorded in Bangladesh?
- The highest recorded value was 3.51 million in 1997.
- What is the lowest malnutrition: number of children who are wasted recorded in Bangladesh?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.31 million in 2018.
- How does Bangladesh rank for malnutrition: number of children who are wasted?
- Bangladesh ranks 5th out of 99 countries with data for 2022.
- Is malnutrition: number of children who are wasted rising or falling in Bangladesh?
- Over the last ten years it is down 1.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Bangladesh 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 Malnutrition: Number of children who are wasted. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 27 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Estimated number of children younger than five who are 'wasted'. Wasting is when a child’s weight is significantly lower than the average for their height, for example because of acute food shortage or disease.