Scientists now believe that the Body Roundness Index (BRI) is a more accurate measure than the commonly used Body Mass Index (BMI).
For years we have been told that the BMI is the final word on whether or not someone’s weight can be considered healthy for their height. But that is no longer the case, according to the NHS BMI calculator.
A report published in The Telegraph said that the British National Health Service now advises measuring your waist to see if you are carrying too much fat around your belly, with the recommendation that you try to keep your waist measurement to half your height.
Recently, experts considered the BMI to be a blunt, vague and very simple tool to determine whether someone is carrying a lot of fat around their stomach, which seems to really pose a risk to your health.
Research published earlier this year found that among 10,000 people in China, those with the “roundest” body types – or the largest waist-to-height ratio – may be up to 163% more likely to develop heart disease. The thinnest.
While the BMI measures weight in proportion to height to determine whether you are overweight, this newly invented index “converts waist and height measurements into an estimate of shape based on how round or oval a person is overall,” says Brendon Noble, professor of regenerative medicine. Head of the Department of Life Sciences at the University of Westminster.
It makes sense, he says, because while fat collected around the abdomen and vital organs has been shown to pose a health risk in countless studies, “subcutaneous” fat in other areas is not associated with worse health outcomes.
The latest idea is that measuring the health of our waistlines using the new “body roundness index” (BRI) may be a favorable way to determine the risk of heart disease and premature death.
Here’s what you need to know about the Body Roundness Index and why experts prefer this new measurement over the BMI.
What is the index of body roundness?
The BMI compares your waist circumference to your height, and gives a score between one and 20 (similar to the BMI which also provides a score), but it also includes “complex equations that have been added to try to make this score more meaningful,” says Professor Noble.
The BMI was invented by American researchers in 2013, and it was developed as a more accurate measure because the BMI does not differentiate between muscle and fat. This means that “a person who has a lot of muscle may end up with a BMI that puts him in the overweight category,” says Professor Noble. Instead, your body roundness index is likely to indicate how much extra weight you’re carrying around your waist.
How is the body roundness index calculated?
The body roundness index is calculated using a mathematical formula: 364.2 − 365.5 × √(1 − (waist circumference in centimeters / 2π)2 / (0.5 × height in centimeters)2, and there are sites on the Internet that allow you to calculate it by entering your data.
What is the indicator of healthy body roundness?
A “healthy” Body Roundness Index score is less than 3, but higher than 0.3. Confusingly, it is possible to be healthy according to your BMI but overweight according to your BMI, and vice versa. A “healthy” BMI is considered a number between 18.5 and 25.
Based on the average body sizes of men and women in Britain, their average body roundness index is 3.8. The average BMI for both men and women in the UK hovers around 27, which makes us very stocky and overweight as a nation according to both measures.
What does the Body Roundness Index mean for your health?
While the BMI looks at your height and weight, the BMI looks specifically at your waist circumference. Some scientists believe that it is a better indicator of many health problems, such as kidney disease, cancer, heart disease, and premature death in general. Professor Noble says, “Many studies indicate that the higher the percentage of body fat, the more likely you are to develop these problems.”
The body roundness index is a good indicator of body fat percentage; It measures your waist circumference relative to your height and can tell you how much fat you have compared to your muscle mass.
The important thing here is visceral fat, the kind found deep in our bellies and between our organs. While the BRI doesn’t directly measure the amount of visceral fat in your body, “your amount of visceral fat is usually a fixed proportion of your total body fat,” says Professor Noble. 10% of the total body fat you carry.
“We still have a lot to learn about fat and how it can affect our health, but visceral fat appears to be more dangerous than subcutaneous fat, based on the research,” Professor Noble explains.
People with large amounts of visceral fat are more likely to have a stroke at an early age, some studies have found, with this type of fat also linked to cancer and type 2 diabetes.
Researchers studying BMI directly, without looking at visceral fat in particular, have seen similar results over the past decade as well.
One study released last year also found that a high BMI is a risk factor for colorectal cancer in particular, while another study in 2021 found that the BMI is a good indicator of which patients with high blood pressure will also develop the disease. Diabetes.
Other long-term studies have found that a higher BMI leads to a higher risk of death in general, especially death from heart disease.
What is body mass index?
BMI is a number calculated using a person’s height and weight, and is a reliable indicator in most cases to assess overweight or underweight in most people. BMI does not measure the amount or percentage of fat in the body, but researchers have found that it is usually related to the percentage of fat in the body, and therefore it is an indicator of the amount of fat a person has, and it is also a means of assessing health risks using the person’s weight and height.
How is body mass index calculated?
The body mass index (BMI) – also known as the body mass index – is calculated by dividing a person’s weight in kilograms by the square of his height in meters. For example, if the person’s height is 170 centimeters and his weight is 75 kilograms, then 170 centimeters are converted to the unit of meters and it becomes 1.7, then the weight is divided by its square. :
75/2(1.7) and the result in this case is 25.95.
As for people who are 20 years of age or older, their body mass index is evaluated as follows:
- Less than 18.5: The person is underweight, which may lead to a weakened immune system and increased risk of osteoporosis. Also, being underweight may be linked to the person suffering from an eating disorder.
- 18.5 to 24.9: Weight is normal, which means that there are no health risks associated with weight to the person’s health, while confirming that this does not mean that there are no health risks associated with other matters.
- 25 to 29.9: The person is overweight.
- 30 and over: the person is obese.
How does the Body Roundness Index compare to the BMI?
As a measure of risk for cardiovascular disease, kidney disease and cancer, the first study looking at body roundness and body fat distribution found that the BMI is a much more accurate indicator than BMI.
BMI may be a more crude measure. In one study conducted last year, results did not show a significant increase in the risk of death in those aged 65 years or older with a BMI between 22.5 and 34.9. However, this does not appear to be true in people classified as obese; Another study showed that having a body mass index above 30 doubles the risk of death approximately 4 times.
Both measures are useful “because they remind us that being overweight is bad for our health,” says Professor Noble.
It is also useful for people to be able to measure their waist and understand the change in it, as this is often a good reflection of their overall health and any lifestyle changes they may have made without noticing.
How can you improve your BMI?
It is known that you cannot specifically burn fat, but as Professor Noble says, “It is very good to know if your BMI is high, but the important thing is what you can do about it.”
A short workout on the treadmill won’t necessarily burn belly fat on its own – “exercise has been shown to increase appetite for some and offset the benefit,” but “we know that building muscle is very helpful in reducing visceral fat.”
Over a long period of time, strength training may be a particularly good way to reduce BMI (or prevent stretching of the waist circumference).
One 2014 Harvard study found that lifting weights is the best way to prevent increased waist circumference in men, even when done for just 20 minutes a day.
But changing your body composition “doesn’t require anything crazy,” says Professor Noble. “For most people, it’s just about knowing that you’ve let go too much, and controlling things is with a healthier diet and more exercise.”