New research indicates using body mass index (BMI) as a tool to measure health risk in older individuals may not be so accurate.
What is BMI
Body mass index is calculated using an individual’s height and weight. Weight in kilograms is divided by height in centimeters squared. BMI is frequently used to assess overall health. The World Health Organization established four BMI categories:
Being overweight increases your risk for heart disease, diabetes, and other illnesses. A quick and easy way to evaluate your risk is to check your body mass index (BMI).
To calculate your BMI all you need to know is your height and weight. Let’s calculate your BMI right now.
BMI = weight (lbs.) divided by height (in.) divided by height (in.) x 703
For example, if you weight is 200 pounds and you are 5’10” (70 in.), your BMI equals 29.
200 divided by 70 divided by 70 x 703 = 28.7
BMI Categories:
Researchers periodically evaluate data from NHANES (National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey). Recently rates of obesity were compared over the past 50 years.
Between 1960-1980 the number of adults who were obese stayed relatively stable. Between 1976-1980 and 1988-1994 data the number of obese adults in the US increased 8 percentage points. Then between 1999-2000 data reported further increases in the number of U.S. obese adults.
Continue readingA study published in the journal of Obesity examined the health and fitness of new recruits for Boston-area emergency services. The study included 370 firefighter, emergency medical technician, and paramedic recruits with an average age of 26 years-old between October 2004 and June 2007. Out of the 370 recruits, 1 out of 5 were of normal weight, ~44% were overweight, and 33% were obese. The weight of the young recruits is significantly higher than older veteran firefighters from the 1980’s and 1990’s.
All recruits must pass a physical fitness treadmill test, which 93% of the overweight recruits did pass; however 42% of the obese participants failed the standard fitness test. Evidence that it isn’t muscle mass causing BMI scores to be high, which is a common misconception in the emergency responder community. Significant findings due to the increasing death rate in emergency responders due to cardiovascular disease and musculoskeletal injuries. It’s critical for emergency responders to be fit since they are responding to life-and-death situations. Obesity can lead to sleep apnea, which in turn results in drowsy, less alert emergency personnel. Enforcing fitness guidelines and making BMI a vital sign during medical examinations is a step towards improving the health of our emergency service recruits and veterans.
All the best,
Lisa Nelson RD
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I find it interesting that identical twins raised apart have similar weight gain patterns and fat deposits. If one is overweight, the other is usually overweight. This pattern suggests a large share of obesity risk is tied to genetics, not just eating habits.
My gut reaction is to argue this and say it provides too easy of a cop out for overweight individuals to say “it’s just my genes”. I argue that the remaining share, determined by how a child is raised, has a significant impact on overall overweight status.
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