There is universal agreement that the best tool to use to determine if you are overweight, or obese is the BMI (Body Mass Index). BMI Calculators make it easy for you to determine your BMI, your weight category, and your associated health risks.

All over the world studies have indicated that BMI provides a reasonably accurate indication of your percentage of body fat. Additional investigations have found a linear relationship between BMI and your likelihood of getting diseases like diabetes, CVD (Cardio Vascular Disease), and certain type of cancer. Because the level of health risk to BMI is not exact only broad ranges of BMI and associated health risks were created. See what BMI category are you in below.

How to Calculate BMI?

If you use Metric units then

BMI = (weight in kgs) / (height in meters)2

If you use English units then

BMI = (weight in pounds) * 703 / (height in inches)2

For an automated online Adult BMI Calculator use

MyDietForWeightLoss.com\Adult-BMI-Calculator

What BMI Category are you in?

To determine your risk level you must first determine what category you fall into based on the following.

Your BMI Your BMI Category

0.0 - 18.5 Underweight

18.5 - 24.9 Normal

25.0 - 29.9 Overweight

30.0 - 39.9 Obese

40.0 - + Morbidly Obese

If you are overweight you have a lot of company. According to the World Health Organization there are over 1 billion overweight adults in the world. Even the obese category contains over 300 million adults.

How does excess fat affect your health risk?

Being overweight or obese can cause adverse metabolic effects on your blood pressure, your cholesterol level, your triglyceride level, and insulin resistance. Being obese can cause nonfatal problems such as infertility, skin problems, chronic musculoskeletal problems, and respiratory difficulties. Being overweight carries a higher risk for CVD, Type 2 Diabetes, gallbladder disease, and some types of cancer such as ones related to hormones.

There are some health risks even if you are not considered overweight. The World Health Organization reported that 58% of diabetes and 21% of ischaemic heart disease and 8-42% of certain types of cancer were associated with people with BMI above 21.

The problems with BMI

BMI (Body Mass Index) has problems with some people.

* It is not reliable if you are over seven feet tall

* It is also not accurate if you have a high ratio of muscle mass

* The interpretation of BMI to health risks for those under 20 years old is different. If you are under 20 use the Child Teen BMI Calculator at MyDietForWeightLoss.com\Child-Teen-BMI-Calculator

What to do if you are overweight?

Most diet plans will help you lose weight temporarily but few keep the pounds off. So in looking for a diet plan you should look for ones that do all of the following. They should not only tell you what to eat but how your body works to store and release fat so you can tell what will work, what will not work, and what you have to do to stay out of starvation mode. The diet plan should recommend types of activities that apply to your situation. The plan should give you options instead of a strict plan so you will have a much better chance of following it. Finally the plan should cover goal setting and your mindset so that you have the best chance of reaching both your short and long term goals.

About the Author: Dave Davis

If you are at least 20 years old use Adult BMI Calculator. For information on how to create the perfect diet plan for you goto MyDietForWeightLoss.com.