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The Body Mass Index (BMI)
A Useful Tool in Determining a Healthy Weight
By Gwen Morrison
Most people are keenly aware that their weight has a strong impact on their overall health. Being overweight increases your risk for a number of serious illnesses, including high blood pressure, diabetes and heart disease. There are also serious health implications to being underweight, such as nutrition deficiency disorders and eating disorders for those individuals who may be obsessed with weight loss. Keeping your weight within a healthy zone is one of the best ways to prevent serious, and even fatal, health issues. But what is the right weight for you? And how do you determine it?
According to the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI), the Body Mass Index (BMI) is a reliable indicator of total body fat. The BMI is a measurement that takes into account an individual's weight-to-height ratio in order to gauge total body fat. The NHLBI recommends the use of BMI in order to assess the level of overweight and obesity in adults, and to estimate relative risk of disease compared to normal weight.
"The BMI is a calculation that assesses the relationship between your height and weight, and estimates your degree of obesity and risk for obesity-related diseases," says Susan L. Burke, MS, RD/LD, CDE, director of nutrition services at eDiets.com in Deerfield Beach, Fla. "This results in a range of numbers, and applies to both men and women, adults over age 18 and under 65."
To calculate your BMI, you need to first calculate your weight in kilograms and then dive it by your height in meters squared. The NHLBI describes this as the formula:
BMI = Your Weight (in kilos) divided by Your Height (in meters) x Your Height (in meters).