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by Shoshanna Gilbert - Monday, 30 September 2024, 4:27 PM
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The clinical term for healthy weight has to do with the Body Mass Index. BMI, coined by scientist Adolphe Quetelet in 1832, is a screening tool that measures the ratio of your height and weight to estimate body fat. If you have a BMI between 18.5 and 24.9, then you are considered as having a healthy weight. Clinical overweight is a BMI of over 25, and clinical obesity is defined as a BMI over 30. Underweight is defined as having a BMI of below 18.5 or weighing 15-20% less than the average weight for the person's age.

I do think society doesn't really "agree" with these terms, mainly because, according to the BMI, most of Americans are either overweight or obese! Most people don't like the way the BMI assesses people. There is a lot of controversy about it use; mainly, it doesn't factor for differences in age, gender, race etc. It also doesn't measure how much of the BMI fat number is also muscle.

Answer 1

Hi Shoshanna,

You make some excellent points about the limitations of BMI as a measure of healthy weight. While it’s a widely used tool, the lack of consideration for individual differences such as age, gender, and muscle mass can definitely skew the results and lead to misconceptions about health. Many athletes and individuals with a higher muscle mass may find themselves categorized as overweight or obese, despite being in great shape.

It’s a complex issue, and I believe that a more holistic approach to assessing health is needed—one that considers various factors beyond just weight and height. Other methods, like body composition analyses, can provide a more nuanced view of health. It would be interesting to explore how these alternative methods could be integrated into public health conversations to offer a more accurate picture of individual health.

Thanks for bringing up this important discussion!

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