Let us start off with a question. Answer this question to yourself and then read on. How do you define healthy body weight? If you came up with an answer that’s great, but you need to remember there is no one correct answer to that question. Healthy body weight can be defined in many ways, such as if you fall within a suggested range for your height, whether or not your body mass index (BMI) is less than 30, and whether your fat distribution pattern is associated with a high or low risk (pear versus apple shape).

A Closer Look at Body Mass Index (BMI)
What is body mass index (BMI)? It’s a tool for assessing adult’s weight over height. To figure out your body mass index (BMI) you need to take your weight (in kilograms) and divide it by your height (in meters squared). You can also take your weight (in pounds) and divide it by your height (in inches squared) and multiply that by 703. To interpret the number you just calculated:

Less than 18.5 means you’re underweight
Between 18.5 - 24.9 means you’re at a healthy body weight
Between 25 - 29.9 means you’re overweight
Between 30 - 34.9 means you’re obese (class I)
Between 35 - 39.9 means you’re obese (class II)
More than 40 means you’re morbidly obese

Now, don’t be too worried if you live an active and physical lifestyle but fall into any of the obese categories. The body mass index isn’t 100% accurate when classifying people into the different categories. A person that has a body mass index (BMI) of 30 may look larger, physically, but be healthier than the person who looks thin and in shape with a body mass index (BMI) of only 20.

A Further Look at Fat Distribution
Earlier I mentioned that fat distribution can be associated with a high or low risk, referring to a pear shape or apple shape. The location of fat on the body can indicate higher or lower risks of adverse health effects. If you have a pear shaped fat distribution it means that your fat is being distributed more along the hip region (which is in fact better for you). An apple shape means that your fat is distributed around the belly and gut regions of the stomach (which can be harmful, organs are surrounded with fat and not muscle). Your health is at risk if your waist-to-hip ratio is over 1.0 for men and over .8 for women.

Health Risks Associated with Body Weight and Fat
• Cardiovascular Disease
• Heart Disease
• Hypertension and Stroke
• Type 2 Diabetes (body resistance to insulin)
• Breast Cancer
• Sleep Apnea (airway block while sleeping)
• Osteoarthritis
• Gallbladder Disease

Appropriate Amount of Fat
The desired amount of body fat percentage for the average male is 12%-20% and for the average woman it’s 20%-25%. For athletes this varies a little, but not by much. For male athletes the desired body fat percentage is 5%-10% and for women athletes it’s 12%-16%. You don’t want to get your body fat too low because it can affect your health by disrupting your hormone synthesis, infertility can become a problem, you may have the inability to keep warm, and you’ll be unable to preserve lean tissue with any kind of disease.

Why Should We Care About All of This?
Because obesity contributes to a widespread of health problems.
Because obesity contributes to chronic diseases.
Because obesity increases the risk of mortality.

Interesting Facts
- Over half of the adults in the United States are considered overweight or obese, looking at their body mass index (BMI) and if it’s more than 25.
- About 15% of children and adolescents (6-19 years old) are overweight.
- The number 1 source of added sugars comes from non-diet soft drinks.
- For every additional serving of sugar-sweetened drink consumer, there is a 60% increase in a child’s risk of becoming overweight.
- Estimated that $30 to $40 billion is spent each year on weight loss (books, diet programs, exercise equipment, etc.)
- Only about 5% of all people trying to lose weight are able to maintain their losses.
- It is said that the first generation of children born in 2000 will die before their parents.
- Obesity is now considered an epidemic.

There is much concern about the future of the United States and its population. Obesity is a factor that isn’t slowing down and is growing exponentially. We, as a nation, need to accept obesity and the risks involved. We need to cut down on our meal portions and make wiser and healthier food choices. If we don’t take action now, the future and health of our children, and even their children, doesn’t look good.

If you liked this post please consider adding us to your RSS Feed