Weight alert

Are you obese, fat or skinny? Check your body mass index and body fat reading

THE New Straits Times-Cyberjaya Green Ride 2013 is all about encouraging a healthy lifestyle. Physical activity and balanced meals will help you maintain your ideal weight.

One way to find out if your weight falls within the healthy range in relation to your height is by using the body mass index (BMI). You can calculate your BMI by dividing your weight (kg) by the square of your height in metres (BMI = kg/m2),
Due to its ease of measurement and calculation, it is the most widely used diagnostic tool to determine if a person is underweight, overweight or obese.

With the World Health Organisation giving its endorsement for the use of BMI to determine a person’s appropriate weight to their height, it has been used extensively by health practitioners around the world.

A person with BMI of  30 and above is considered obese and those between 25 and 29.9 are overweight. Healthy weight is between 18.5  and 24.9, and underweight is below 18.5.

There are health risks associated with people with underweight and overweight problems. Illness associated with being underweight ranges from simple tiredness due to inadequate energy intake, reduced immunity, infections, anaemia, vitamin deficiencies, thinning of the bones, infertility and heart rhythm irregularities.

While those with high BMI are at risk of high blood cholesterol or other lipid disorders, type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, certain cancers, gall bladder disease, sleep apnea and snoring, premature death, osteoarthritis and joint disease.

The classification enables health professionals to recognise that people with low BMI may have an eating disorder, or alert them to certain health problems in  a person with high BMI.

To maintain an ideal weight, it is advisable to start on a healthy diet that has a balance of food groups, vitamins and minerals as well as engaging in physical activity.  

If you are in the overweight and obese range, losing at least 10 per cent of body weight may bring about desirable health benefits and improved feelings of well-being.

Come to  the Health & Style booth at the New Straits Times-Cyberjaya Green Ride 2013 on Sept 14 at Cyberjaya Lakeside and check your BMI reading.

BP Healthcare Group will set up a mobile diagnostic centre equipped with state-of-the-art equipment for audiometry test, lung function test, resting ECG, body composition analysis, bone mineral density check and body mass index test.