Sierra Leone - Prevalence of underweight, weight for age, female (% of children under 5)

Prevalence of underweight, weight for age, female (% of children under 5) in Sierra Leone was 12.80 as of 2019. Its highest value over the past 19 years was 24.50 in 2005, while its lowest value was 11.40 in 2014.

Definition: Prevalence of underweight, female, is the percentage of girls under age 5 whose weight for age is more than two standard deviations below the median for the international reference population ages 0-59 months. The data are based on the WHO's new child growth standards released in 2006.

Source: World Health Organization, Global Database on Child Growth and Malnutrition. Country-level data are unadjusted data from national surveys, and thus may not be comparable across countries.

See also:

Year Value
2000 19.40
2005 24.50
2010 16.40
2014 11.40
2017 11.60
2019 12.80

Aggregation method: Linear mixed-effect model estimates

Periodicity: Annual

General Comments: Undernourished children have lower resistance to infection and are more likely to die from common childhood ailments such as diarrheal diseases and respiratory infections. Frequent illness saps the nutritional status of those who survive, locking them int

Classification

Topic: Health Indicators

Sub-Topic: Nutrition