Why do bmi measurements have limitations

For this reason, you might have a normal "healthy" weight, according to your BMI, but still face health risks due to excess body fat. For example, excess abdominal fat that pushes your waistline to larger than 35 inches for women and 40 inches for men ups your risk of obesity-related diseases, according to the National Institutes of Health, regardless of your BMI.

And normal weight obesity -- which happens when you have extra body fat but do not have overweight, according to BMI -- increases your blood lipid and blood pressure levels, which increases your risk of heart disease.

While BMI might underestimate the risk for people with normal weight but high body fat, it can overestimate the risk for muscular, healthy people. Someone putting in serious time at the weight room might have a body weight that pushes their BMI into the "overweight" or "obesity" category, even if they carry very little body fat -- and therefore have a lower risk of obesity-related diseases than someone at the same weight with more fat tissue. BMI also doesn't distinguish between the type of fat you carry -- subcutaneous or visceral fat.

While subcutaneous fat -- the fat you see under your skin, which you can pinch -- affects the way you look, it's visceral fat -- "hidden" fat located deep in your abdomen that surrounds your internal organs -- that poses the highest health risk.

One limitation to the body mass index is that it does not differentiate between fat and lean body mass. For example, an athlete or bodybuilder with a large amount of muscle mass could very easily fall into the overweight or obese categories based on their BMI.

However, BMI has been found to be very consistent amongst the general population. National Academy of Sports Medicine. The body mass index is merely a ratio of weight to height. Therefore, it does not take body composition into account. This means that this assessment does not account for whether your weight is predominantly fat or muscle. Age and sex. Body composition. BMI and health. Stages of development. Making BMI accurate. Exposure to air pollutants may amplify risk for depression in healthy individuals.

Costs associated with obesity may account for 3. Related Coverage. How do you lose belly fat? Medically reviewed by Daniel Bubnis, M. Medically reviewed by Gerhard Whitworth, RN. These are called the five metabolic risk factors. Together, they can increase your chances of heart disease, stroke, and diabetes. Although measuring body mass index can be a quick and easy way to screen for your health outcomes, there are numerous caveats that BMI does not address, such as different demographics, weight distribution, and body fat percentage.

In order to more accurately understand your health, metabolic factors like blood pressure and waist circumference can better predict your overall risk for certain health conditions. If you are concerned about BMI or your weight, it's perfectly normal and safe to consult your doctor or a medical professional to better understand what is personally healthy for you and your body.

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