In general, excess weight is discussed as if it were one condition. It is not! This is a multifaceted problem and even among health professionals there are huge misunderstandings. These misunderstanding cause a great deal of harm to those coping with the problem and, believe it or not, to some people who do not have the problem.
For years, there have been charts that explain based upon height, gender and age, what a person should weigh. An adult woman with a small frame should, according to most charts weigh between 95 and 100 pounds – depends on the chart. Flight Attendants and women in other appearance-based industries were often censored or reprimanded in some way if they gained weight beyond what the charts dictated. There is a problem with this. Suppose one of these women got really active in a sport or some other highly physical activity. Her muscle mass would increase which means her weight would increase. According to the charts, she could be considered overweight, when, in fact, she was as healthy and probably less fat than some of the people whose weight was within the acceptable range.
Another concept of determining if one is overweight has emerged–the Body Mass Index or BMI, which uses an individual’s height and weight. This is not completely different from the charts as it still determines a person’s amount of body fat by height and weight. A basic determination of a person’s BMI is determined by his or her body weight divided by the square of his or her height. In short if your body mass is under 19, you are under weight, 19 to 25 optimal weight, 25 to 30 overweight, 30 to 40 obese and over 40 morbidly obese. Again, this does not make allowances for the person who may have more muscle mass, and therefore weigh more. Extra muscle mass makes you more, not less, healthy.
Now there are products that measure your body’s actual fat composition. This is called the Bioelectrical Impedance Method. In reality it is fat and excess fluids you want to lose. Body and muscle tissue have different levels of electrical conductivity. There are scales that measure the amount of fat in your body by sending a tiny, perfectly safe electrical current through your body. You don’t feel a thing. Your percentage of body fat is calculated. We all need a certain amount of fat to be healthy. Using your gender, age, weight and height, these products can give you more accurate and reliable information to help you set and reach your goals.