Although the Center for Disease Control feels that using the BMI as an indicator of body fat in both adults and children, it does not measure fat directly. In addition, it should only be used track weights in populations. It should never be used as a diagnostic tool but it can be used to indicate potential issues.
If you are not sure about BMI or Body Mass Index. The idea is that one takes a person's weight in kilograms or pounds and divides it by the square of the weight in pounds or meters. Honestly, it is much easier to find a BMI calculator for most people. In theory, the numbers can tell you if you are underweight, normal weight, overweight, or obese.
There was a recent study that looked at how accurate a person's BMI was in terms of determining obesity. There are indications that the BMI is unable to predict a person's body fat percentage because it does not take into account the way a person's fat is distributed. In addition, it does not take into account a persons race, gender, bone density, muscle density, and so much more.
One study looked at results of BMI and determined that it only 36 percent met the BMI numbers for being obese, yet about 3 in 4 people in the study were classified as obese using a different method. So many people who receive a BMI result falling in the normal range, may indeed be obese and may not know it. Furthermore, even when BMI is calculated in a medical setting, it is not usually used to determine treatment.
This has lead to groups such as the American Medical Association to recommend that medical personnel move away from using BMI to determine health and obesity and move towards other measures such as how fat is distributed around the body, waist circumference, and how much fat a person has in their diet. This gives a better overall idea of whether a person is overweight or obese.
Let me know what you think, I'd love to hear. Have a great weekend.
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