The best way is to do an evaluation by the Body Mass Index (BMI), which is calculated taking into account the weight and height of the person. “This index is very good to get an idea of the population because it is easy to verify and it reaches an average close to reality, although, individually, there are other more precise methods”, says nutritionist Carla Avesani, from the Federal University of São Paulo. Paul (Unifesp). This is because the BMI is unable to assess the composition of each person’s weight, that is, it does not distinguish what specialists call lean mass (bones, muscles, water and viscera) from what is really that unwanted fat. Want an example? A very muscular athlete may have a high BMI, which would indicate non-existing overweight despite being just fairly strong.
When the subject is malnutrition, BMI cannot be chosen as the only indicator either. A person with apparently normal weight can be considered malnourished if he has low blood levels of a protein called serum albumin. In a laboratory test, any number below 3.4 milligrams of albumin per deciliter of blood draws the attention of specialists. According to the World Health Organization about 800 million people across the planet suffer from malnutrition. But the number of overweight individuals is even greater: 1 billion! Obesity has increased a lot in recent decades all over the world for a simple mathematical matter: people are consuming more energy than they spend, both by eating more and exercising less.
Although it is not the only indicator that should be taken into account, the Body Mass Index (BMI) helps specialists to identify who has the scale numbers far above or far below what they should. In the tables to the side and below, there are six weight ranges, with the indication of the BMI of each one of them. To calculate your index, simply divide your weight in kilograms by your height in meters raised to the frame. See the calculation example for someone weighing 50 kilos and 1.60 meters tall:
50 = 50 = 19.5 BMI
1.6 x 1.6 2.56
MALNUTRITION (BMI LESS THAN 16)
Those with an index lower than 16 have a high chance of being severely malnourished. For someone’s body in this state to continue functioning, the muscles themselves are «consumed», becoming a source of energy.
THINNESS (BMI BETWEEN 16.1 and 18.4)
In this range, the person may still be prone to health problems linked to malnutrition. The most incredible thing is that most models fit into this weight range, which is below the recommended by experts.
NORMALITY (BMI BETWEEN 18.5 and 25)
If you’ve done the math and found your BMI to be within that range, congratulations. Keep it up because this is the ideal ratio to maintain between weight and height, free from problems related to malnutrition and without concerns about obesity
OVERWEIGHT (BMI BETWEEN 25.1 and 29.9)
Here begins the other side of the problem, that is, those extra kilos. However, those who are at this level are still very close to getting on with the scales, they just need to eat healthier and dedicate themselves a little more to physical activities.
OBESITY (BMI BETWEEN 30 and 39.9)
Excess weight in the figure leaves no doubt and, in addition to aesthetic discomfort, it takes on more serious proportions, threatening the person’s health. Obese people are, for example, three times more likely to have hypertension and diabetes problems.
MORBID OBESITY (BMI OVER 40)
Those who have reached this point urgently need to lose many kilos of weight, as they are at risk of death. Stomach reduction surgeries, a radical option to make people eat less, are mainly indicated for the morbidly obese