Beyond BMI: Why doctors won't stop using an outdated measure

weasleman42

http://www.slate.com/id/2223095/

Interesting info.

mamaof2girls

Very Interesting! I have heard before that the waist to hip ratio is a more accurate measure of if you are at a healthy weight or not.

SHBoss1673

body fat % is better than W2H but they are both good measurements.

gemiwing

I'd like to take the BMI and drop it off in the middle of the desert. lol I hate that thing.

We have far better measurement tools, that are just as simple to use, to justify keeping the BMI around as some sort of standard.

Now some insurance companies are using it to deny people insurance or raise their rates. Pffft. So a skinny fat person is healthier than a larger muscled person? Makes'a no sense!

*steps off soapbox*

astridfeline

Thanks, great article!

stef_e_b

I don't think waist to hip ratio is a great tool either. I think in order for it to be accurate you need to be in good shape because I have a good waist to hip ratio but I'm still obese.

osmium

I have to agree with Stef. My Waist to Hip ratio is 0.73, which is good and considered low risk. However, my BMI is 29. I tend to put all my weight on my bum and thighs first, so I keep this excellent ratio despite definitely needing to lose weight. However, I know I must be an unusual body shape as I can never get jeans that fit me! To fit my thighs I end up with inches spare around my tummy!

So given I'm not muscle bound, I think a "healthy" BMI is a good goal for me

SHBoss1673

I disagree, W2H ratio is a good tool, but that's all it is. Here's the deal. None of these calculations are meant to be sole measurements of your health. W2H, BMI, Body Fat, VO2 max, Heart Rate, Maximal Heart rate, perceived endurance...etc. they are all part of the puzzle.

Taken by itself, BMI is a poor tool for measuring health, the same goes for many others to varying degrees. But I count BMI as a tool, take BMI, and pair it with Body Fat % and Waist to Hip, and resting heart rate, and you have a decent indicator of where you are and what kind of shape you are in.

The other thing is, this whole area needs to have a little wiggle room built in. Common sense dictates that not everyone will fit the same body shape, so you have to take the tools and apply them to your own shape. If you're more of a pear shape, then yeah, W2H ratio is going to be out of proportion, others are apple shaped, and that may mean even though their body fat % is going down significantly, they are still at a high risk for coronary artery disease and stroke. Yet another may have "short" muscle length, and no matter what they do, they will never achieve that size 2 body because their muscles are shorter, which gives bulk, and makes you look bigger than someone else with the exact same lean tissue mass and height.

All of this is individualized, once you find your own body type, and figure out what a GOOD goal for you is, then you can be confident in the tools you are using.

osmium

I agree that they are tools. Taking me for example
BMI = 29
W2H = 0.73
Body fat% = not sure, but imagine 30% or more
Resting Heart Rate = 50bpm

So 2 out of 4 good, 2 out of 4 bad. So this tells me something I already know - I need to lose weight, but I'm fairly fit and my fat hangs out in the slightly less risky parts of my body. So using all these "tools" I get a pretty good picture of where I'm at.