Being overweight or obese is really not good for your health as it increases the risk of various health concerns such as heart attack, type II diabetes, osteoarthritis, stroke and several cancers. For several years doctors have been using BMI or Body Mass Index as an indicator of weight-related health risks.
However, the latest question in the doctors and health experts minds these days is are your BMI results accurate? BMI can be calculated by a formula that is derived by keying in your height and weight. The BMI below 18.5 indicates you are underweight, between the ranges of 18.5 to 25 is an ideal weight. The range 25-30 is overweight and above 30 is obese.
The BMI alone cannot be used as a diagnostic tool to isolate health risks. The doctors may need to include measurements of a percentage of body fat, exercise patterns, diet history and family history. To identify if your BMI results are accurate, you may need to take into account; the age of a person; their gender, and muscle mass namely lean body mass and fat mass.
Some heavily muscled athletes may have a higher BMI though they do not have body fat. Waist circumference can also be an excellent measurement of overall health.
In order to reduce your waistline and get the perfect BMI you may need to eat a balanced diet, follow a regular exercise regime and drink plenty of water. Drinking water is indeed one of the easiest methods to lose weight. Water is a major constituent of our body and it not only hydrates your body but it also enables the functionality of your brain and muscles.
Water not only is the key component that keeps the body hydrated but it also helps our body function smoothly and properly. The harmful wastes that are accumulated in the body are also flushed out from the body with the help of water through the urinary tract. Water helps in regulating the body temperature. Water is also effective in controlling and preventing kidney stones as well as constipation.
It is very important to prevent your body from dehydration as whenever your body performs any basic tasks such as breathing, urination, sweat, excretion the water is lost from the body. Dehydration results in the thickening of blood and hampers the transport of vital nutrients to the various organs.
The amount of water that needs to be consumed varies from person to person and ideally 6 to 8 glasses of water should be consumed each day. You can also consume other liquids such as fruit juices, tea, soda and coffee as well. Fruits and vegetables also contain water that can be used by the body.
To identify if you are consuming enough water or not you can check few things. The color of urine is one of the most common indicators if your body is hydrated. The urine needs to be clear and pale. If the urine is dark it means the body is dehydrated. The difficult bowel movements and constipation also indicate that you need to consume more water. Proper body temperature and elastic skin also show that you are properly hydrated.
By taking all the above-mentioned factors into account you can decide if your BMI results are accurate or not. Do not put your entire understanding of your weight and fat mass into your BMI result, if you are sceptical about it, ask your doctor to do some more tests and figure out if you really are susceptible to the health risks associated with a high BMI result.
Sourced from: Dugout
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