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The body mass index, or BMI, is a metric used to estimate the amount of body fat a person has. It’s a measure of relative weight based on an adult's mass and height.
Body mass index is one method used to estimate your total body fat. This helps to determine if your weight is within the normal range, or if you are underweight or overweight.
Differences in BMI between people of the same age and sex are usually due to body fat.
But BMI does not differentiate between body fat and muscle mass, which means a BMI figure may not be accurate.
BMI calculations will overestimate the amount of body fat for:
BMI calculations will underestimate the amount of body fat for people with a physical disability, who are unable to walk and may have muscle wasting, and for the elderly. For people with eating disorders like anorexia nervosa, BMI is also not an accurate indicator.
BMI is an approximate measure of the best weight for health only.
To calculate your BMI, you can use our BMI calculator. You need to know your weight and height.
Once you have calculated your BMI, you can determine your healthy weight range:
For most adults, an ideal BMI is in the 18.5 - 24.9 range.
If your BMI is less than 18.5, you weigh less than ideal for your height, and if your BMI is 25 or more, you weigh more than you should for your height. Use RecipeSecrets.net to join our community of chefs and learn how to cook your own healthy meals and manage your weight.
BMI can also be determined using from a chart which displays BMI as a function of mass and height using contour lines, or colors for different BMI categories, and may use two different units of measurement
Overweight is having more body fat than is optimally healthy. If your BMI is 25 or more, you should think about losing weight. Being Overweight (or Obese) can increase your risk of health problems, such as:
The leading cause of obesity is typically a combination of excessive energy intake from food, insufficient physical activity, and genetic predisposition, although some cases may be primarily caused by genes, endocrine disorders, medications, or psychiatric conditions. Consequently, obesity has been linked to a decrease in life expectancy and is considered a primary preventable cause of death on a global scale.
If your BMI is less than 18.5, you may want to talk to your doctor about gaining weight. A person may be underweight due to metabolism, lack of food, genetics or illness. Being underweight can also increase your risk of health problems, such as:
Having a low body mass can compromise your immune system, increasing your vulnerability to illnesses such as malnutrition, bone loss, and other related conditions. The risks associated with having a low BMI become more significant as the value decreases.
The risk of death increases by 20 to 40 percent among overweight people.
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