As the conversation around diet culture continues to evolve, people are starting to question the accuracy of body mass index (BMI). In this video, learn what BMI is, why it only offers a limited view into someone's health status, and other factors to consider.
References
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Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2024). Adult BMI calculator.
Eknoyan, G. (2007). Adolphe Quetelet (1796–1874)—the average man and indices of obesity. Nephrology Dialysis Transplantation.
Jackson, C. L., et al. (2014). Body-mass index and mortality risk in U.S. Blacks compared to whites. Obesity (Silver Spring).
Neeland, I. J., et al. (2018). Cardiovascular and metabolic heterogeneity of obesity: Clinical challenges and implications for management. Circulation.
Rasmussen, N. Downsizing obesity: On Ancel Keys, the origins of BMI, and the neglect of excess weight as a health hazard in the United States from the 1950s to 1970s. Journal of the History of the Behavioral Sciences.
Sabin, J. A., et al. (2012). Implicit and explicit anti-fat bias among a large sample of medical doctors by BMI, race/ethnicity and gender. PLoS One.
Sutin, A. R., et al. Weight discrimination and risk of mortality. Psychological Science.
Tomiyama, A. J., et al. How and why weight stigma drives the obesity ‘epidemic’ and harms health. BMC Med.
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