Body Mass Index (BMI) is a measure of body fat based on height and weight. Knowing your Body Mass Index (BMI) is a place to start when you’ve made the decision to be in charge of your health. It can help you know if you’re within the healthy weight range, underweight or overweight. As you might know, being overweight or even underweight makes us susceptible to various diseases; hence, knowing your BMI will make you affect the needed change as regards your health.
Your Body Mass Index is calculated by dividing your weight in kilograms by your height in square meters. BMI of 25.0 or more is overweight, while the healthy range is 18.3 to 24.9. BMI applies to adults 18-65 years.
Importantly, BMI is not used for athletes, pregnant women, young children and the elderly because it does not take into account if the weight is carried as fat or muscle. Athletes may have high BMI but are not at any health risk. The aged ones may be losing body muscle mass while young children have not completed their growth and may have lower muscle mass, thus, may have lower BMI. Also, during pregnancy and lactation, a woman’s body composition changes, so using BMI for these set of people is not appropriate.
As your BMI increases, so do your risk for the following diseases:
Diabetes
Hypertension
Stroke
Gallbladder diseases
Sleep apnea
Some Cancers
Cardiovascular diseases it pays to know your Body Mass Index, as it guides you in making lifestyle changes that help to lower your chances of developing the above-listed diseases.
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