Body mass index: Obesity, BMI, and health: A critical review.

Body composition data for individuals 8 years of age and older: U.S. Body fat percentage - Are you at a healthy weight? (n.d.).Body composition information and FAQ's sheet.You can learn more about how we ensure our content is accurate and current by reading our editorial policy. We link primary sources - including studies, scientific references, and statistics - within each article and also list them in the resources section at the bottom of our articles. Medical News Today has strict sourcing guidelines and draws only from peer-reviewed studies, academic research institutions, and medical journals and associations. However, this method does still provide a quick and useful clinical tool to assess health risks. Having a high body fat percentage or BMI does not always lead to health problems. There are many limitations to BMI and measuring body fat. For example, fat around the abdomen has higher health risks than fat in other areas. The location of body fat is also relevant to overall health. For example, the BMI of a person with high bone density and muscle mass may indicate they have high body fat.Īlso, BMI cannot assess where fat is in the body. These factors are relevant to overall health and assessing body fat. It makes no distinction between lean muscle, body fat percentage, and bone mass. Using BMI to assess body fat or overall health is another issue. This suggests there may be cultural or racial bias with body fat percentage ideals. These differences raise concerns about whether or not ideal body fat percentages are realistic.Īverage body fat percentages also vary across race and ethnicity. Assessments of body fat consistently show that people have higher body fat percentages than official guidelines recommend.

Body fat percentages of women