Just what is a BMI?

What is a BMI?

Recently Michelle Obama was in the headlines and was criticized for not knowing what a BMI was when her daughter was taken to a pediatrician and that doctor mentioned that she might be overweight and she had what was considered a high bmi for a child. It was a wakeup call for Mrs. Obama and it should be a wakeup call for you as well!

Taken from the CDC's website (Center for Disease Control and Prevention). The definition of BMI is this: Body Mass Index (BMI) is a number calculated from a person's weight and height. BMI provides a reliable indicator of body fatness for most people and is used to screen for weight categories that may lead to health problems.

As a Certified Nutritionist, I can't stress enough how important it is to know what your current bmi is before starting any weightloss and Nutrition program. If you don't know where you are how do you know where you should be? I tell all of my clients before I start their personalized weightloss programs to check their current bmi's. If they do not know I help them out by using the calculation provided below or you can always use the most current chart provided by the CDC.

Most people are actually amazed to see how overweight they really are and have no idea that they might be bordering on obesity or worse than that, morbidly obese. This is a wonderful tool for you to use to determine where you are and how you would like to start setting some positive healthy goals in your life.

Unfortunately childhood obesity is a national crisis in America today and the CDC has also provided a bmi chart (calculator) to help with the problem that so many young children are suffering with today. Children do not get nearly enough exercise and are not provided with healthy nutritious options when it comes to food. This is only contributes to the problem.

Take a minute to look at both bmi charts and determine your current bmi. If you have concerns about your child, glance at the children's bmi chart as well. If you don't like what you see do something about it. Start making positive and healthy changes in your lifestyle. You'll not only feel better about yourself but you'll be a wonderful role model for your children as well.

(It is rather complex to calculate BMI on your own, which is why there are many BMI calculators available throughout the web to help you. You may want to talk to your doctor about his own methods of calculating BMI for you. To help you to know how it is formulated, though, here is the formula that is used.In pounds and inches, the formula is weight (pounds) divided by height (inches) squared multiplied by a conversion factor of 703.

For example, if you weigh 150 pounds and are five foot five inches in height, or 65 inches tall, the calculations would be as follows. 150 divided by 65, squared then multiplied by 703. This gives you a BMI of 24.96.)

Lisa Maiorana, Certified Personal Nutritionist for www.eatritestaylite.com