BMI Calculator

What is BMI?

Your body size can be determined by your BMI, or body mass index. Your weight and height are used to calculate your BMI (your weight divided by your height squared). Your BMI can help determine your risk of having a heart attack or stroke, along with a number of other factors including your blood pressure and cholesterol. Recall that BMI is not the most accurate indicator of whether your weight falls within a healthy range for your height. It's not a reliable measure of your general health and ignores crucial aspects like age, gender, and body composition (fat, muscle and bone).

How to use BMI calculator?

To determine your BMI, perform the following steps:

Put your weight in and choose a unit (kilograms or pounds).

In feet and inches, enter your height.

Then click Calculate.

Simply click "re-calculate" to perform the calculation once more.

How is BMI calculated?

A person's BMI is determined by multiplying their height in metres by their square of their weight in kilos. Your BMI will be determined, for instance, as follows if your weight is 60 kilogrammes and your height is 5 feet 3 inches: 60 / 2.61 (1.6 * 1.6) (5 feet 3 inches is roughly 1.6 metres) (5 feet 3 inches is approximately 1.6 meters) This results in a BMI of 22.9.

Understanding your BMI result

Underweight

Being underweight may indicate that you aren't getting enough to eat or that you are ill. A doctor can assist you if you are underweight.

Optimal weight

Continue your wonderful effort! Seek advice on keeping a healthy weight from the food, nutrition, and exercise sections.

Overweight

Combining a healthy diet with regular exercise is the greatest method to lose weight if you're overweight.

Obese

If you are obese, a mix of food, exercise, and, in some situations, medications is the best method to lose weight. For assistance and guidance, consult a doctor of medicine.

Is Body Mass Index reliable?

The BMI scale compares your weight to your height. Since being overweight or obese considerably raises your risk of developing a number of medical illnesses, such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and cancer, accurate diagnoses of obesity are crucial. As rates of overweight or obesity rise, attention has turned to BMI and its limitations as a gauge of an individual's optimum weight rather than that of entire communities where "averages" apply. BMI provides a reliable indication of your weight-related health risks for the majority of persons. Regardless of the variables below, if your BMI is over 35, your weight is surely endangering your health. However, there are specific circumstances where BMI in the 25–35 BMI range may under or overestimate these hazards.

Risks associated with being overweight

The risk of several significant diseases and health issues rises with weight gain. The following is a list of the dangers, as provided by the Centers for CDC:

elevated blood pressure

Higher levels of the generally regarded "bad cholesterol," LDL, lower levels of the generally regarded "good cholesterol," HDL, and higher levels of triglycerides

Diabetes Type II

cardiovascular disease

Stroke

a gallbladder condition

Joint disease known as osteoarthritis, which is brought on by the destruction of joint cartilage,

issues with breathing and sleep apnea

specific cancers (endometrial, breast, colon, kidney, gallbladder, liver)

poor standard of living

clinical depression, anxiety, and other mental diseases

body aches and trouble performing some physical tasks

Generally speaking, a higher mortality risk in comparison to people with a healthy BMI

Risks associated with being underweight

There are hazards linked with being underweight, which are described below:

vitamin deficiency, anaemia, and poor nutrition (lowered ability to carry blood vessels)

Osteoporosis is a condition that weakens bones and raises the chance of fracturing a bone.

a decline in immunological response

difficulties with growth and development, particularly in kids and teenagers

hormonal imbalances that may affect a woman's ability to conceive since they can interfere with her menstrual cycle. Additionally, obese women are more likely to miscarry in the first trimester. Potential postoperative difficulties

Generally speaking, a higher mortality risk in comparison to people with a healthy BMI

Being underweight is occasionally a symptom of a disease or underlying condition, such as anorexia nervosa, which carries risks of its own.

Limitations of the BMI

Your BMI can indicate if you are overweight but not whether you are overweight in terms of fat.

The BMI is unable to distinguish between extra fat, muscle, or bone.

Age, gender, or muscle mass are not taken into account by the adult BMI.

This implies:

People who lose muscle as they age may fall into the "healthy weight" range despite carrying excess fat. Very muscular adults and athletes may be classified as "overweight" or "obese" despite having minimal body fat.

A woman's BMI result will also be impacted by pregnancy. As you gain weight, your BMI will rise. When figuring out your BMI, utilise your pre-pregnancy weight.

Who shouldn't use a BMI Calculator

Bodybuilders, long-distance runners, expectant mothers, the elderly, and small children are not included in the BMI calculations. This is so because BMI only considers the number and ignores whether the weight is made up of fat or muscle. Athletes and people with increased muscle mass may have high BMIs without necessarily having higher health risks. A person's BMI may be lower if they have less muscle mass, such as growing youngsters or elderly people who may be losing some muscle. Using BMI is inappropriate since a woman's body composition changes throughout pregnancy and nursing.

When to see a doctor?

If your BMI falls into any group other than normal, you should ideally get checked at least once every six months or once a year. However, the greater the risk you are at, the further your BMI deviates from the normal range, which is 18.5 to 25. You must consult a doctor right away if you are gravely underweight or even just on the verge of being obese. Because a BMI score only goes so far, it is challenging to determine your health's precise state from the remaining readings. The value above merely provides you with an approximation that is universal. They should never take the place of medical advice because they are impersonal.