"Why BMI is a Big Fat Scam

[Bandista 7,466]

http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2014/07/why-bmi-big-fat-scam

[Summer Rain 245]

Very interesting Bandista. Thanks for sharing.

[Jack 855]

great link!

[B-52 7,113]

I do not believe in BMI's...the only true measurement is Body fat %....how much of your weight is comprised of fat.

According to the BMI chart, I am 15 lbs overweight. Yet my body fat% is in the athletic-fit range...I cannot loose any additional weight. There is nothing left to loose, other than essential muscle mass, organs, etc....

If I was to loose any more weight, it would be unhealthy to say the least...possibly lethal.

If a person weighs 300lbs, how much must he/she loose to be healthy? If that person finds that 70% of their 300lbs is fat, then they need to get that 70% down to a healthy range, say 20%...which means they need to loose 50% of that 300lbs, in fat, to achieve their goal....which would be 150lbs to loose...IN FAT, and reach a weight of 150....

According to the BMI, height also plays a factor....in body fat index, it does not. In BMI terms, that person can still be considered overweight.

2-3 superbowls ago, I noticed a star running back for one of the teams. He happened to be the same height as I am...yet, he weighed 25 pounds more than me. But to look at him, there is not an ounce of fat on him....if I am overweight, then he must be obese according to the BMI chart. But there is no way he can be obese, let alone overweight....and I am sure his body fat% is extremely low.

[HealthyNewMe 1,935]

The beauty of getting older is that I finally figured out that NUMBERS are just that......NUMBERS.

There is NO NUMBER on a scale or chart that can define "HOW HEALTHY I FEEL."

[aroundhky 1,174]

Agree and thanks for the post! To me, BMI is just more BS that some Dr's, insurance companies and govt agencies try to apply to people in a one size fits all kind of health assessment. Their intentions are good for the most part, but unfortunately, it's not that simple....way too many variables to take into account other than a number on a scale or chart to determine if someone is healthy.

Currently, my body fat percentage is 17%, which for 41 years old is in the healthy/fit range. But my BMI is 29, which is at the top end of "overweight" and borderline "obese". So the BMI chart is holding my muscle mass against me as a negative.

[gowalking 10,790]

The article is true enough. The problem however, doesn't lie in BMI numbers, but the fact that the medical profession uses it as an arbitrary, albeit major indicator of what is considered a healthy vs. unhealthy weight. BMI should be only one of many guages that determine a patient's overall health.