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Defining Overweight and Obesity
Being overweight or obese is the result of consuming too many
calories which the body does not need. To find out whether we
are within a healthy, or overweight, obese or morbidly obese range,
we use a tool called the Body Mass Index (BMI) calculator. This
calculates our height and weight ratio and gives us a reading
accordingly.
Please use our BMI Calculator to help you to find
where you fall in these categories.
Body Mass Index standards:
- BMI 18.5 to 24.9 Healthy Weight
- BMI 25 to 29.9 Overweight
- BMI 30 to 39.9 Obese
- BMI 40 to 49.9 Morbidly Obese
- BMI 50 or higher Super Obese
Definition of Overweight
Being overweight is defined as being heavier or fatter than the recommended height and weight range for their age. It is often seen as a 'pre-obesity' phase whereby this goes unchecked and progresses to obesity.
Definition of Obesity
Obesity is known to most people as being more than just overweight
but been very overweight. Obesity is a serious medical condition
where there is an accumulation of excess body fat
Surprisingly there are more people that are categorized as being
obese than we know. Sometimes we are aware of being ‘a little
rounded’ when our clothes don’t fit any more but there
are many people who choose to ignore this and just buy bigger clothes.
Using the Body Mass Index calculator, if the calculation figure
goes above 30 then this is classified as ‘obese.’
Waist Hip Ratio
We can use the waist hip ratio (WHR) to determine
the fat distribution of an individual.
To measure waist-hip ratio, measure your waist just above the belly
button. Then, measure the hip circumference at the widest part of
your buttocks with the legs close together. The waist circumference
is divided by the hip circumference and equals to waist-hip ratio.
In WHR, the body fat distribution determines the associated risk
for health problems such as diabetes, hypertension and coronary
heart disease.
Below is a chart that determines the body fat distribution according
waist-hip ratio and their associated health risks:
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| MALE |
FEMALE |
Health Risk Based Solely on WHR |
| 0.95 or below |
0.80 or below |
Low risk |
| 0.96 to 1.0 |
0.81 to 0.85 |
Moderate Risk |
| 1.0+ |
0.85+ |
High Risk |
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