Am I Obese

QUESTION: Am I obese?

ANSWER:

Am I obese? Body Mass Index (BMI) is a scientific way of measuring obesity done with mathematics. The American Obesity Association explains it as your weight in pounds divided by your height in inches squared, multiplied by the number 704.5. If your score is between 25 and 29, you are overweight. If it is 30 or over, you are obese. If it is 40 or more, you are severely obese. However, this can be misleading if you are very muscular, pregnant, or lactating.

According to the American Obesity Association’s website, “there are many factors that impact a person’s health risk relative to their BMI such as waist size, smoking, the types of foods someone eats regularly, exercise, and medical conditions associated with obesity including diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and coronary heart disease.”