Diet and Weight Loss Current Topics in Diet and Weight Loss

Are You Overweight? Using the New NIH Weight Guidelines

Introduction

If you are facing the effects of "creeping" weight gain, how do you know when you should really get serious about losing those extra pounds? After all, based on the growing percentage of Americans who are overweight (see Table 1), it is likely that many of your friends, colleagues, and relatives are experiencing the same weight gain. How do we know if those "love handles" are not just a middle age phenomenon or a problem that you need to deal with?

In 1998, The National Institutes of Health (NIH) issued standards to help you determine if you are overweight or obese. These standards are based on the most extensive review of the scientific literature conducted to date regarding the relationship between weight and health risk by the Obesity Education Initiative Expert Panel. The Panel systematically evaluated published scientific literature from 1980 to 1997. The report established guidelines, or "standards of care," for physicians and health professionals to utilize in managing patients with a broad range of weight problems. The guidelines included what measurements to use to determine if a person is overweight or obese, as well as how to initiate and maintain a weight loss program.

The NIH recommends two measurements that you can determine at home---the body-mass index (BMI) and waist circumference---which will give you an accurate idea of what shape you are really in. These numbers go beyond a simple bathroom scale reading or a number from a weight-for-height table hanging in your physician's office.

Taking the Right Measurements

Body Mass Index

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