⚖️ BMI Calculator ⭐
Obesity is becoming a global concern. The influx of ultra-processed foods and an increasingly sedentary lifestyle are adding to the obesity problem. If you are concerned about your weight and want to know if you are overweight, our body mass index (BMI) calculator is here to help.
How To Use The BMI Calculator?
Simply enter your height and weight in metric or imperial units and the body mass index (BMI) calculator will do the rest for you. A BMI calculator follows a simple equation. It is calculated by taking your weight and dividing it by the square of your height. This formula is the same in both metric and imperial systems of measurement.
What Does My BMI Number Mean?
Before searching for a BMI calculator for males or females, know that body mass index doesn’t take the person's sex into account. Once you get a number from the body mass index calculator, correlate it with these ranges to know where you stand.
Below 18.5: You are underweight and are likely required to increase your weight
18.5-24.9: If you fall in this category, you have a healthy weight
25.0-29.9: You are probably overweight if you fall under this category
30.0 +: A BMI above 30 indicates obesity
Is BMI Calculated The Same Way For Adults And Children?
BMI is not calculated the same way for adults and children. Since children are growing in height and weight, following the BMI calculator will be inaccurate in this case. Instead, BMI is calculated for children and teens as a percentile of people of the same age and sex. Here are the main categories according to this calculation:
Lesser than the 5th percentile: Underweight category
Between the 5th and 85th percentile: Healthy weight category
Between the 85th and 95th percentile: Overweight category
Equal to or above the 95th percentile: Obese category
Is BMI A Reliable Metric Of Health?
Typing BMI calculators for males and females online and using any calculator won’t shed much light on your health. With even the most trusted body mass index (BMI) calculators, it is important to remember that it is not the final say on your health. Here are 6 things/factors a BMI calculator doesn’t take into account:
Location Of Body Fat:
Where you are storing your body fat is as important, if not more important than your BMI. Your overall fat storage can be broadly divided into two categories:
Subcutaneous fat: This is the fat located just under your skin. It is the unsavoury-looking fat you can grab and pinch. It is typically soft to the touch. Although it is not aesthetically pleasing, subcutaneous fat is not very life-threatening.
Visceral fat: This is the fat situated around your vital organs. While you need a certain amount of visceral fat to survive, high deposits are concerning. A beer belly is a classic example of visceral fat. It is hard and surrounds your organs. If you have high visceral fat, you run the risk of developing chronic illnesses such as diabetes and heart conditions.
Your Age
Even though a BMI calculator does not take age into account, it plays a big role in your health. As you get older, your body fat percentage tends to increase. Body fat percentage is the amount of fat in your body in comparison to your total body mass. Once you hit 30, your age plays a much bigger role than your BMI.
Your Sex
Even if sex is not considered in a BMI calculator, it plays a role in your health and BMI. Women generally tend to have more body fat than men, typically around 10 percent more. This goes for even the fittest women.
Your Ethnicity
There is a relationship between ethnicity and BMI. For many races, the standard BMI calculations may not work. This is mainly due to the differences in body proportions, bone density, and overall body fat percentage. For instance, Asians are considered overweight or obese even at lower BMI numbers.
Your Overall Muscle Mass
BMI calculator for males or females doesn’t take your muscle mass into account. It is simply your weight divided by the square of your height. Your weight comprises water, bones, organs, muscles, and body fat. So if you have high muscle mass, your BMI might be higher than normal. The true measure of health in this case will be done using a body fat percentage test.
Special Cases Such As Pregnancy
For pregnant women, BMI is not a reliable health metric. Instead of using a BMI calculator, contact your doctor to learn more about the right weight range for you.
When Is BMI An Effective Tool?
With so many caveats, when is BMI the right metric for health? If your BMI number is high and other tests performed by the doctor also correlate with its findings, then it becomes an effective tool. It indicates that at this particular weight range, you run the risk of certain health issues such as diabetes or heart disease. If your other health markers are normal and the BMI number is high or low, then it isn’t sufficient to evaluate your health.
How To Achieve A Normal Weight?
Concerned about your health and weight? Follow these general guidelines to get to a healthy BMI range if you are overweight or obese:
- Eat whole foods and remove or limit processed foods from your diet.
- Include more movement in your daily schedule.
- Add strength training to facilitate muscle growth. Do it at least twice a week for long-term, consistent results.
- Increase your protein intake to facilitate muscle growth.
The Bottomline
A BMI calculator can be a valuable tool for knowing more about your health. There is no such thing as a BMI calculator for males and females, but sex does play a role in how much fat you store. In the end, body fat percentage is a more important metric than BMI, as the latter doesn’t take muscle mass, pregnancy, type of fat, and ethnicity into account. So to conclude, a BMI calculator is great when combined with other health markers, but doesn’t mean much on its own.
Source: https://www.webmd.com/diet/body-bmi-calculator