How To Calculate BMI

Obesity has becoming a worrying factor and it poses great dangers to health among the present day generation people. Body Mass Index of BMI plays a vital role and it will help you know about the risks of getting heart attacks and various other diseases by calculating it. I have tried to explain the concepts on how to calculate BMI in this article.

The calculation of BMI is little bit complicated. It is difficult to find out the ratio between our height and weight and scale it to single ratio level. When body height increases, ideal weight actually squares off. For example, a person who is 1.5 times height than a normal individual would have 2.5 times the weight of the same individual. The formula was developed in the metric system and here is a simple formula to calculate it.

How to calculate Body Mass Index:

* BMI = Height (in metres) / Weight (in Kg) squared

The formula is self descriptive. You just have to divide the body height and weight taken in their respective metric systems. There is a special formula to identify BMI for Americans.

* BMI = (Height (in inches) * 703 ) / Weight (in pounds) squared

By this system, you should multiply the height by 703 and then divide it. If you find this calculation, here is an important tip for you. 12 inches make a foot. Hence, if you are 5 feet, then you are 60 inches in height.

The above said formula will help you to know about the BMI rate and the U.S. National Institute of Health has come out with the following results in a tabular form.

According to their reports, if your BMI is less than 18.5, you are considered to be underweight. If you have a BMI between 18.5 and 24.9, then you are considered to be normal and healthy. If you have a BMI between 25 and 29.9, you are considered to be overweight. Having a BMI of more than 30 is considered to be obese. The last 2 cases of people will have a higher probability of getting heart related problems and other diseases.

Make sure you follow a healthy life style to get rid of these problems. It is highly recommended to have a general body check once in a year irrespective of your age to make sure you stay healthy.