Being at a healthy weight will reduce your risk of health problems, reduce your chances of having body pains, improve your sleep and allow you to participate in desired activities, according to the American Heart Association. Your body mass index, or BMI, can help you determine whether or not you're within your ideal weight range.
Purpose
The BMI formula is generally a reliable indicator of how much body fat you have. Although research shows that BMI correlates to direct body fat measures such as underwater weighing, BMI is just a screening tool for unhealthy weight categories that could lead to health problems later, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The Formula
To calculate your body mass index, multiply your weight in pounds by how tall you are in inches squared, then multiply the answer by the number 703, according to the Mayo Clinic. If, for example, you weigh 150 lbs. and you're 65 inches tall, the calculation would be: 150 divided by 4,225 (65 squared) multiplied by 703, coming out to a BMI of approximately 24.96, according to the CDC.
Results
If you're at least 20 years old, your BMI is interpreted based on broad weight status categories for all ages for both sexes, according to the CDC. Based on BMI categories, you are underweight if your BMI is under 18.5, a normal weight if your BMI is 18.5 to 24.9, overweight if your BMI is 25 to 29.9 and obese if your BMI is 30 or over, according to the CDC. Calculating BMI for children and teens is a bit trickier because children and teens grow at different paces and no single weight range is necessarily appropriate for all children of the same age and sex. Therefore, pediatricians plot kids' and teens' BMIs on growth charts and assess where they stand, percentile-wise, among kids of the same age and sex.
Further Steps
Based on BMI alone, you may inaccurately be told you are "overweight" if you are a muscular athlete, or you may be at a "normal weight" but still have too much body fat, according to the CDC. Since BMI is merely a screening tool, your doctor would have to perform extra assessments such as taking a family history, evaluating your diet and activity and measuring your skinfold thickness before she can accurately diagnose you with a weight problem.
Considerations
Your BMI is only one factor that is related to your risk for health problems related to overweight and obesity, according to the CDC. A high waist circumference and risk factors such as high blood pressure and a sedentary lifestyle also increase your chances of having health problems later in life. Rather than merely relying on your BMI score to dictate your health, maintain a well-balanced diet, get at least 30 minutes of exercise most days of the week and get regular medical check-ups.
Member Comments