How useful is body mass index (BMI)?

Thinking Nutrition

Carrying too much weight is linked to poorer health. But just how much weight is too much? Body fat can be measured in several different ways, with each method having its own pros and cons. Body mass index or BMI is by far the most common one as it only relies on knowing your height and weight. But with that simplicity comes flaws as those easy results can sometimes be misleading, which is why the widespread use of BMI is troubling. In this podcast, I’ll look at the different ways that body fat assessment can be made and explain why you should take any BMI label it may give you with a grain of salt.

Links referred to in the podcast

• BMI calculator https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/tools/body-mass-index-calculator-for-adult
• Diagnostic performance of BMI to detect obesity https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20125098

Episode transcript
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