What do you think of the BMI?

LumpySpacePrincess1

Accurate? Horse *kitten*? Coincidentally accurate for everyone else except you?

init2fitit

mostly bs, though it does provide a good starting point for weight ranges.

TavistockToad

Accurate? Horse *kitten*? Coincidentally accurate for everyone else except you?

generally it is ok as a rough guideline....

however i firmly believe that the actual numbers mean very little whether you're on about weight, BMI, or whatever... its about how you feel! eat some fruit and veg, do some exercise, eat cake occasionally....

RoadsterGirlie

It's a good rough guideline, and is more accurate than a lot of people on this site make it out to be.

Kr1ptonite

I don't like it at all. Heck it put me as overweight lol.

JamieM8168

Not a fan.
It helped me figure out a goal weight though so at least its good for something

iechick

It's what I've used as my guideline to chose a goal weight range and it's worked well for me. I started at a bmi of 27.8 and now have a bmi of 19.4 and I'm in maintenance.

vayvonne1999

My BMI tells me that I am a fat a**. It's pretty accurate because I am a fat a**. To be in my ideal weight range it says I need to be about 120 pounds... which I don't know that I will ever see again because that is how much I weighed as a freshman in high school. I will reassess my opinion on it when I feel like I am in a healthy range it if still tells me I am obese.

LumpySpacePrincess1

I don't like it at all. Heck it put me as overweight lol.

Me too! Boo! Hiss! :explode:
It also says my ideal weight is essentially underweight. I've been at that weight before and I looked like a bulimic Skeletor.

erickirb

BMI is not meant for individual use, it was designed to compare groups of populations. i.e. Generally speaking those that fall in the overweight category of BMI tend to have more health issues than healthy, but any one person can be healthy in the overweight category or unhealthy in the "healthy" category.

ewrob

In a country where 2/3rds of the population are overweight or obese, (thus establishing the norm) it doesn't surprise me that people who see themselves as at a normal weight would view a tool that paints a more objective picture with skepticism.

I think it is a good tool in general. Consider that it accounts for variations in things like frame size and other individual differences by offering a wide range for a healthy weight.

erica2u

At the very top of what BMI says is healthy, I'm a size 4. I go a little over, size 6 and I'm overweight. At the low end of the BMI healthy scale, I'd likely be anorexic. So it doesn't work for me. My doctor said BMI is accurate for 70% of the population. I'm in the 30% it doesn't work for.

midnightisolde

Well I think that the BMI should only be used as a guideline but not as an absolute. For those with more muscle mass, it may put them as overweight and for people with small frames it may put them as underweight even though they may be perfectly healthy. Especially as it was first devised in the 19th century so may no longer be applicable with people being taller etc.

I found this on Wikipedia (not the most accurate but ok) - ''While the formula previously called the Quetelet Index for BMI dates to the 19th century, the new term "body mass index" for the ratio and its popularity date to a paper published in the July edition of 1972 in the Journal of Chronic Diseases by Ancel Keys, which found the BMI to be the best proxy for body fat percentage among ratios of weight and height;[6][7] the interest in measuring body fat being due to obesity becoming a discernible issue in prosperous Western societies. BMI was explicitly cited by Keys as being appropriate for population studies, and inappropriate for individual diagnosis.''

The last sentence is the most important to me. BMI is best to make comparison to the general population and averages but I don't think it can be used in individual cases except as a guideline. Then you should look at body fat percentage and frame size. It is after all just a maths equation.

LuLuChick78

I am nearly considered "overweight" by my BMI. I don't put a lot of stock in it because I know I am NOT nearly overweight. I am quite muscular and assume that is why by BMI is 24.

Men in the Olympia would likely be considered morbidly obese even though their bf% is low single digits because of their weight/height ratio.

Take BMI with a grain of salt. It is a good tool to use in some circumstances...but every situation is different.

SteveK279

Not a fan as it doesn't take into account height as much as it should or a person's build at all. It's ok for the purposes it was intended as a broad population indicator, but could be improved upon. There was an alternative formula proposed to take into account the fact that people are getting taller generationally and I think that is more accurate.

BMI = weight Kg / height M ^2
Alt BMI = 1.3 * weight Kg / height M ^2.5

It's the same for people around 5ft 6 (1.69 m) and higher or lower depending on your height.

Unfortunately I don't know of any that would take build into account so people with a narrow & broad frame are perhaps unfairly treated equally by general BMI type formulae

trogalicious

It told me I'm too short.

LumpySpacePrincess1

Well I think that the BMI should only be used as a guideline but not as an absolute. For those with more muscle mass, it may put them as overweight and for people with small frames it may put them as underweight even though they may be perfectly healthy. Especially as it was first devised in the 19th century so may no longer be applicable with people being taller etc.

I found this on Wikipedia (not the most accurate but ok) - ''While the formula previously called the Quetelet Index for BMI dates to the 19th century, the new term "body mass index" for the ratio and its popularity date to a paper published in the July edition of 1972 in the Journal of Chronic Diseases by Ancel Keys, which found the BMI to be the best proxy for body fat percentage among ratios of weight and height;[6][7] the interest in measuring body fat being due to obesity becoming a discernible issue in prosperous Western societies. BMI was explicitly cited by Keys as being appropriate for population studies, and inappropriate for individual diagnosis.''

The last sentence is the most important to me. BMI is best to make comparison to the general population and averages but I don't think it can be used in individual cases except as a guideline. Then you should look at body fat percentage and frame size. It is after all just a maths equation.

Great answer. I feel smarter already :bigsmile:

melaniecheeks

Its a good starting point unless you're very muscular.

angelb1983

Can it possibly be accurate without taking into account muscle weight? There can be really fit people that it considers overweight, but have a very low body fat percentage.

LumpySpacePrincess1

It told me I'm too short.

Have you by chance ever been to Mordor with a lad named Sam?

bcattoes

I think it is the best tool we have for measuring obesity rates within a population. And it's not a bad measurement on an individual level for women and most men.