BMI Is Actually Pretty Accurate at Measuring American Obesity, Study Finds

Body mass index might be a more accurate measurement than commonly thought. New research shows that a vast majority of people with a BMI signifying obesity have substantial excess body fat. Scientists at Johns Hopkins University conducted the study, published this month in JAMA. In a nationally representative sample of Americans, they found that adults with an obese BMI almost always met the criteria for obesity in terms of waist circumstance or body fat percentage, too. The findings suggest that BMI remains an important population-level tool for assessing obesity, the researchers say, even as many people are trying to phase it out. The researchers analyzed data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), a survey of Americans’ dieting and lifestyle habits regularly run by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. As part of the NHANES, some people are given more extensive examinations, which include tests measuring their body fat or waist circumstance. ... Read full article.