Summary In 2019, 4·8% (95% UI 3·9–6·0) of DALYs among children under 5 years was attributable to child underweight. 241 000 deaths (183 000–326 000) among children under 5 globally in 2019 were attributable to child underweight. 

Definition Child underweight is defined as weight-for-age more than one standard deviation below the reference median on the weight-age growth curve based on WHO 2006 growth standards for children 0–59 months. The TMREL is weight-for-age Z-score ≥ -1.

Total sources
Exposure 1270
Relative risk 1
Table 1: Total sources used in GBD 2019 estimation
What is new in GBD 2019?
  • •We improved data processing by age-sex splitting all prevalence data prior to modelling.
  • •We revised microdata processing to exclude 1) non-sex-specific data, 2) data with improbable Z-scores (HAZ, WAZ, WHZ, or BMI above 6 SD or below -6 SD), and 3) data with impossible values (negative height, weight, or age). 
  • •We revised the stage I prediction step in ST-GPR models of prevalence of <-3 Z-scores, <-2 Z-scores, and mean Z-score to use ensemble priors reflecting multiple predictive covariates. 
  • •We recalculated ensemble weights for distribution fitting using all available microdata. 
Deaths
YLLs
YLDs
DALYs
Number
(millions)
Rate (per
100 000)
Number
(millions)
Rate (per
100 000)
Number
(millions)
Rate (per
100 000)
Number
(millions)
Rate (per
100 000)
2019
Both Sexes
0·360 (0·298
to 0·447)
5·2 (4·3
to 6·6)
23·8 (18·6
to 31·4)
353·6 (275·6
to 468·7)
4·35 (2·77
to 6·15)
59·2 (37·6
to 83·0)
28·1 (22·5
to 35·9)
412·8 (330·3
to 529·4)
Females
0·188 (0·154
to 0·234)
5·4 (4·3
to 6·7)
12·1 (9·40
to 15·7)
370·8 (286·0
to 483·1)
1·95 (1·24
to 2·76)
54·4 (34·6
to 76·3)
14·1 (11·3
to 17·8)
425·2 (338·2
to 539·6)
Males
0·172 (0·141
to 0·216)
5·1 (4·3
to 6·4)
11·6 (9·00
to 15·4)
338·0 (261·2
to 449·1)
2·40 (1·53
to 3·42)
64·1 (40·9
to 91·2)
14·0 (11·2
to 18·0)
402·0 (321·6
to 518·5)
Percentage change 2010-19
Both Sexes
–38·8% (–47·2
to –29·2)
–43·1% (–51·0
to –33·9)
–46·6% (–55·7
to –36·0)
–47·9% (–56·9
to –37·5)
10·7% (7·4
to 14·0)
1·9% (–0·7
to 4·5)
–41·9% (–50·7
to –31·9)
–44·0% (–52·4
to –34·1)
Females
–37·4% (–46·2
to –26·9)
–43·0% (–51·5
to –33·3)
–46·2% (–55·2
to –35·4)
–47·7% (–56·6
to –37·3)
10·3% (7·0
to 13·7)
1·7% (–0·9
to 4·4)
–42·1% (–51·0
to –31·7)
–44·3% (–52·9
to –34·2)
Males
–40·3% (–49·0
to –30·5)
–43·3% (–51·2
to –34·4)
–47·0% (–55·9
to –36·9)
–48·1% (–56·8
to –38·1)
10·9% (6·8
to 15·5)
2·1% (–1·5
to 6·0)
–41·8% (–50·7
to –31·8)
–43·7% (–52·3
to –33·9)
Numbers in parentheses are 95% uncertainty intervals.
Table 2: Attributable global deaths, YLLs, YLDs, and DALYs in counts and age-standardised rates for both sexes combined, females, and males, 2019, with percentage change between 2010 and 2019
Deaths YLLs YLDs DALYs
1990 15th 8th 20th 8th
2010 27th 17th 23rd 17th
2019 34th 22nd 22nd 22nd
Table 3: Rank among attributable most detailed risks of global deaths, YLLs, YLDs, and DALYs in 1990, 2010, and 2019 for both sexes combined
Figure 1: Composition of attributable global DALYs by constituent Level 2 causes for both sexes combined, 2019
Figure 2: Composition of attributable global DALYs by YLLs and YLDs, age group, and sex, 2019
No Legend
Figure 3: Age-standardised all-cause SEV by location, both sexes combined, 2019
No Legend
Figure 4: Percentage change in all-cause age-standardised SEV by SDI, both sexes combined, 1990–2019
Figure 5: Percentage of population exposed to risk factor, both sexes combined, 2019
Figure 6: All-cause mortality relative risk, both sexes combined, 2019