New clinical definition of obesity could help target care more effectively, saving time and money
The traditional way of assessing whether someone is overweight using body mass index (BMI) may fail to capture whether excess body fat is harmful and could be supplemented with a second measure when assessing patients, a new UCL study suggests.
A new UCL study suggests that the traditional body mass index (BMI) may not accurately capture whether excess body fat is harmful to health, potentially leading to misleading assessments of obesity. Published in the International Journal of Obesity, the research compares nearly 7,000 46-year-olds using both BMI and the newer Lancet Commission on Clinical Obesity definition.
According to the new definition, which considers excess body fat alongside tissue or organ impairment and daily living limitations, about two-thirds (69%) of those classified as obese (BMI ≥30 kg/m²) did not meet clinical obesity criteria, while only 4% of those considered healthy by BMI had clinical obesity. The study's lead author, Dr. Jo Blodgett, recommends that clinicians and policymakers consider moving beyond BMI alone when assessing the health implications of an individual's weight, as the newer definition could better identify those at risk of obesity-related illness and save the NHS time and money.
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