What is the ideal BMI?
You often hear about imc, whether on websites, in magazines or even among health professionals. When we seek to obtain information about you, about your health, the passage on the scale is obligatory and leads to the calculation of the Body Mass Index.
But what is it for? And what does it mean?
What is BMI?
BMI, or Body Mass Index , is the calculation of a person’s weight/height ratio. The calculation is simple: weight in kg divided by height squared. It allows you to know where you stand, to estimate body fat . Based on this index, you can identify certain problems, or prevent the risk of diseases . In terms of health, it is extremely important.
It is estimated that below 18, the person is underweight, in a situation of thinness. Between 18 and 24, the person is at their ideal weight. Finally, if the BMI exceeds 25, it is overweight, then obesity beyond 30. People with a BMI greater than 25 are considered to be favorable to health risks such as diabetes, certain cancers , cardiovascular diseases, strokes etc.
It was during the 19th century that this index was born, from the research of Adolphe Quetelet. The latter first gave his name to this index, which was called the Quetelet index. Even today, we use it regularly to measure the weight/height balance.
Is there an ideal BMI?
An ideal BMI , in the sense that we can understand it (the same Body Mass Index for everyone) does not exist.
Everyone is different, in their sex, their frame, their build… Many considerations come into play. A man will not have the same body as a woman, not the same shapes and certainly not the same musculature . That there is an ideal BMI amounts to saying that there is an ideal weight .
But a person who is athletic and therefore has developed muscles will therefore have a higher BMI than a person of the same height. Yet neither would be overweight.
Similarly, a man and a woman of the same size will not have the same index, and this, by their frame, their genes also, which can be taken into account.
The ideal BMI would ultimately correspond to the one in which you feel good and where you are in good health . So it depends on everyone. This is why several other methods of finding the ideal weight have been developed, which you can see here . We can therefore conclude that each has its own ideal.
Stephen Paul is the lead author and founder of My Health Sponsor. Holder of a diploma in health and well-being coaching with more than 200 articles in the field of health, he makes it a point of honor to offer advice based on reliable information, based on scientific research, and verified by health professionals.