Sources & Methodology
All cutoffs and formulas on this site are taken from published, peer-reviewed sources or official health-authority guidelines.
- WHO BMI classification
World Health Organization. Obesity and overweight — fact sheet.
Read source → - WHO Asian-Pacific cutoffs
WHO Expert Consultation. Appropriate body-mass index for Asian populations and its implications for policy and intervention strategies. The Lancet 2004; 363:157–163.
- Health Promotion Board Singapore
Singapore HPB. Revised body mass index cut-off points for adult Singaporeans (2005).
- Working Group on Obesity in China
Zhou BF. Predictive values of body mass index and waist circumference for risk factors of certain related diseases in Chinese adults. Biomedical and Environmental Sciences 2002; 15:83–96.
- NHS UK BMI guidance
National Health Service (UK). BMI healthy weight calculator.
Read source → - NIH / CDC adult BMI
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. About Adult BMI.
Read source → - Waist-to-Height Ratio
Ashwell M, Hsieh SD. Six reasons why the waist-to-height ratio is a rapid and effective global indicator for health risks. International Journal of Food Sciences and Nutrition 2005; 56(5):303–307.
- FFMI
Kouri EM, Pope HG Jr, Katz DL, Oliva P. Fat-free mass index in users and nonusers of anabolic-androgenic steroids. Clinical Journal of Sport Medicine 1995; 5:223–228.
- Body Adiposity Index
Bergman RN, Stefanovski D, Buchanan TA, Sumner AE, Reynolds JC, Sebring NG, Xiang AH, Watanabe RM. A better index of body adiposity. Obesity 2011; 19(5):1083–1089.
- Age-adjusted BMI
Heo M, Faith MS, Pietrobelli A, Heymsfield SB. Percentage of body fat cutoffs by sex, age, and race-ethnicity in the US adult population from NHANES 1999-2004. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 2012; 95:594–602.
- BMI misclassification
Tomiyama AJ, Hunger JM, Nguyen-Cuu J, Wells C. Misclassification of cardiometabolic health when using body-mass index categories in NHANES 2005-2012. International Journal of Obesity 2016; 40:883–886.
- Obesity paradox
Carbone S, Lavie CJ, Arena R. Obesity and Heart Failure: Focus on the Obesity Paradox. Progress in Cardiovascular Diseases 2017; 60:14–21.
- BMI history
Eknoyan G. Adolphe Quetelet (1796–1874) — the average man and indices of obesity. Nephrology Dialysis Transplantation 2008; 23:47–51.
- Body-weight fluctuation
Hall KD, Sacks G, Chandramohan D, et al. Quantification of the effect of energy imbalance on bodyweight. The Lancet 2011; 378:826–837.