BMI? Oh My!
Published on 28 Dec 2006 at 12:22 pm.
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Filed under About Buff, Aging Gracefully, Words, Etcetera, etcetera.
When did the BMI become the metric for measuring one’s worth?
The BMI, or Body Mass Index, is a ratio of weight to height. It’s a convenient (but not precise) way to tell if you need to lose or gain weight. You can calculate yours at the press of a button.
The scale for the general population is:
- Underweight = <18.5
- Normal weight = 18.5-24.9
- Overweight = 25-29.9
- Obese = BMI of 30 or greater.
I say “not precise” because it doesn’t take into account more subtle measurements of fat to muscle mass. Buff, being buff, hovers in the low 20s but I am not skinny. Arnold Schwarzenegger is obese according to this chart, with a BMI of 33.
According to the National Institutes of Health, a “high BMI increases your risk of developing type 2 diabetes by up to 66% and your risk of hypertension by as much as 29%.”
I am strongly in favor of keeping the weight off, and remaining active and fit. But it’s a little unsettling to note that BMI has suddenly become a means of limiting opportunity.
In order to combat extreme thinness among models, Italy recently passed a law that prohibits models who have a BMI of less than 18.5 from working. And in China, government officials have set adoption standards that bar adoption by a foreigner with a BMI over 40.
There are good reasons to stay within the 20-29 range, good reasons to discourage eating disorders, and to encourage weight loss. But something in my libertarian marrow is riled by governments telling us we can’t work until we bulk up, or take care of children until we slim down. With the best of intentions, both regulations set disturbing precedents.
It’s a little Aryan for my taste.
Buff