BMI measures your
weight in relation to your height, and is closely
associated with measures of body fat. You can
calculate your BMI using this formula:
For example, for
someone who is 5 feet, 7 inches tall and weighs 220
pounds, the calculation would look like
this:
A BMI of 18.5 to
24.9 is considered healthy. A person with a BMI of
25 to 29.9 is considered overweight, and a person
with a BMI of 30 or more is considered
obese.
You can also find
your weight group on the chart below. The chart
applies to all adults. The higher weights in the
healthy range apply to people with more muscle and
bone, such as men. Even within the healthy range,
weight gain could increase your risk for health
problems.
Find
your weight on the bottom of the graph. Go straight
up from that point until you come to the line that
matches your height. Then look to find your weight
group. The higher your BMI is over 25, the greater
chance you may have of developing health
problems.
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Without shoes **Without clothes
Because BMI does
not show the difference between fat and muscle, it
does not always accurately predict when weight
could lead to health problems. For example, someone
with a lot of muscle (such as a body builder) may
have a BMI in the unhealthy range, but still be
healthy and have little risk of developing diabetes
or having a heart attack.
BMI also may not accurately reflect
body fatness in people who are very short (under 5
feet) and in older people, who tend to lose muscle
mass as they age. And it may not be the best
predictor of weight-related health problems among
some racial and ethnic groups such as African
American and Hispanic/Latino American women. But
for most people, BMI is a reliable way to tell if
your weight is putting your health at risk.
