I’ve never been a fan of the BMI, cause as a former weightlifter I knew about these drawbacks years ago:
ScienceDaily: BMI Not Accurate Indicator Of Body Fat, New Research Suggests
Body mass index, or BMI, long considered the standard for measuring the amount of fat in a person’s body, may not be as accurate as originally thought, according to new research.
A research team from Michigan State University and Saginaw Valley State University measured the BMI of more than 400 college students – some of whom were athletes and some not – and found that in most cases the student’s BMI did not accurately reflect his or her percentage of body fat.
The problem, especially among younger people and athletes, is that BMI does not distinguish between body fat and muscle mass.
And given that you can get a decent body fat scale for about $100, why mess with BMI at all? The only people I know of who think it is worthwhile are vegetarian scaremongers who want to distort the obesity statistics so they can force vegetarianism on everyone else.
Half Ton Man Continues Weight Loss - washingtonpost.com
A man who once weighed well over a half ton left his house for the first time in five years Wednesday _ wheeled outside on his bed to greet neighbors and see a mariachi band. “The sky is beautiful and blue and what I want is to enjoy the sun,” said Manuel Uribe, who had once been certified by doctors as weighing 1,235 pounds. Though still unable to leave his bed, Uribe has lost 395 pounds since he began a high-protein diet a year ago. He now weights about 840 pounds.
He passed on gastric bypass surgery, choosing the help of nutritionists and the Zone diet instead. His long-term goal is to reach a still-hefty 265 pounds, which he expects will take several years.
Excite News - Study Finds Kids Gain Weight Over Summer
The nation’s schools, under fire for unhealthy school lunches, well-stocked vending machines and phys ed cuts, may actually do a better job than parents in keeping children fit and trim. A study found that 5- and 6-year-olds gained more weight over the summer than during the school year, casting doubt on the assumption that kids are more active during summer vacation.The findings don’t reveal what’s behind the out-of-school weight gain, but the researchers speculate it’s because the summer months lack the structure of the school year with all its activities and daily comings and goings.
The first thing I thought of when I read this was that perhaps it is a genetic response to centuries of expecting a lean winter. It would be interesting to see whether the summer weight gain is restricted to kids (at which point an activity vs calories assumption could be pursued) or whether adults gain weight as well (supporting the genetic theory.)
Reduce your BMI, pay less for insurance - Fitness - MSNBC.com
Amid a growing obesity epidemic in the United States, an insurance company has started giving customers another reason to slim down by being one of the first in the nation to offer discounts to customers who keep a low body-mass index.The program by Phoenix Cos. Inc. offers discounts up to 20 percent on life insurance policies to customers whose BMI is verified by a doctor to be 19 to 25.
First of all, enough with the obesity “epidemic” garbage. Epidemic means transmissible. Fat people don’t make you fat.
Secondly, however, this is a good idea. It is fair for the insurance company and for all of its customers (large and small) for those most at risk to pay a little more. These discounts are phased in at 5% after 5 years of low BMI, 10% after 10 and so on up to a maximum 20% discount.