Nearly 342 million people in China are classified as overweight or obese, an increase of more than 200 percent compared with the figures 30 years ago, according to the US Chamber of Commerce.

The Malnutrition Mapping Project was developed by the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition and was launched at the UN Special Session on Children in 2002, with funding from Amway Corp - considered the world's largest direct selling company.

This year's figures also show that 9.4 percent of the children under the age of five suffered stunted growth in 2010 because of malnutrition, down from 21.8 percent in 2002; but worryingly, 7 percent of the total in that category is also considered overweight.