Does BMI tell you the truth about healthy body weight?

WHO (World Health Organization) says that since 1980, the worldwide obesity rates have significantly doubled. The incredible advent of technology, junk foods and the lack of physical exercises are found to be the reasons behind this significant rise. Being obese can lead to the world impact of death to health issues associated with being underweight. With obesity being such a public health concern, measuring it correctly becomes even more important.

What is BMI (Body Mass Index)?

Body Mass Index (BMI) is a unique calculation that segregates people into any one of the four distinctive categories. They are,

• People who are underweight, with a score of less than 18.5
• People who are normal weight, with a score between 18.5 and 24.9
• People who are Overweight, with a score of 25 to 25.9; and obese, with a score of 30 or greater

BMI calculation retrieves the above-specified value which further leads to the decision of being obese or not.

Does BMI help to determine the obesity?

No. That’s what obesity experts around the world say today. This is because the Height and weight are the only two factors that are used to calculate a person’s body mass index (BMI), a measure of body fat and general health. However, this one-size-fits-all approach may be flawed, according to researchers from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). The international Journal of Obesity published this fact in an article that describes how ineffective BMI is. It also reveals the data about the number of people who may be inaccurately deemed overweight or obese. It emphasized the urgency for Doctors and patients to opt for an alternative method to accurately assess healthy weight ranges.

Based on BMI calculation which calculates height and weight, one can never take into account a person’s bone, muscle, or fat proportions. For instance, a person with exceptional muscle tone and minimal body fat have the chances to produce a higher BMI compared to someone with higher fat and lower muscle tone. This happens because muscle is four times as dense as fat tissue. In fact, many professional football players’ BMIs would place them in the obese category when they’re actually in better shape than the average person.

To conclude this, the BMI calculation, which came into practices in the 1830s is definitely not a great measure of fitness and may convey false information.