New weight guidelines for Americans: justified or injudicious?

Article Abstract:

In a recent report entitled Dietary Guidelines for Americans, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) presents a new set of standards for the ideal body weights of adults. This report has received widespread publicity because it recommends increasing the ideal body weights established in previous reports. The greatest revisions were suggested for people older than 35 years of age, as compared with those aged 19 to 34. The new report recommends a body weight of 140 to 184 pounds for a person (woman or man) who is 6 feet tall and between the ages of 19 and 34, while 155 to 199 pounds is recommended for those over 35 at the same height. This is in contrast to the recommended upper limit of 168 pounds (for a man with a medium-size body frame) established in the 1959 Metropolitan Life Insurance Company tables. The previously established weight guidelines do not suggest a weight gain with increasing age, as is indicated in the recent revision. These new guidelines for body weight were based on the National Research Council Report of 1989. This report suggests that ideal body weights should be increased. However, it does not make specific recommendations as to what the new ideal body weights should be. The issue of optimal body weight is complicated further by the effects of cigarette smoking on body weight. Cigarette smokers tend to weigh less than nonsmokers, and also have higher mortality because of their smoking habit. Therefore, studies that do not account for cigarette smoking will report, erroneously, a higher mortality for lighter-weight people. Also, the relationship between body weight and the risk of developing heart disease has been well documented, and recommending an increase in body weight with increasing age contradicts the conclusions of medical research reports. In conclusion, Americans should not be encouraged to gain excess weight as they grow older. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Standards, editorial

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Reassessment of body mass indices

Article Abstract:

Because obesity is becoming increasingly common in the United States, researchers are attempting to develop accurate and practical ways of measuring the degree of obesity. Currently, the body mass indices (BMIs) are used; they are various ratios of weight to height, such as weight divided by height and weight divided by height squared. While the BMIs are often relied upon to measure obesity, it has not been shown that they are sufficiently reliable. In this study, six BMIs were evaluated for accuracy in a population of 213 women and 150 men, who ranged from lean to obese. In this way, the BMIs were tested over the entire range of obesity as it occurs in the normal population. The study group was also diverse in terms of heights and ages, and included blacks, whites, and Orientals. The reliability of each BMI was gauged by comparing its results to the percent body fat as determined by densitometry, or underwater weighing. Densitometry is considered an accurate way of measuring body fat, and the amount of body fat is the basis for obesity. When each BMI was compared with the percent body fat, the two measures were correlated, but not closely enough to use the BMI to define the degree of the individual's obesity. These findings indicate that BMIs cannot be relied upon as conclusive measures of obesity, and that they should be used with caution. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Body composition, Adipose tissues, Adipose tissue

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Comparison of convenient indicators of obesity

Article Abstract:

Obesity is usually defined as the presence of excess body fat. Measurements that evaluate individuals for obesity are based on estimates of body fat, but body fat is difficult to estimate accurately in a living person. No one method of assessing obesity has been recognized as the "gold standard" or best approach. A comparison of different obesity measurements was conducted with two groups of male and female junior high school students aged 11 to 16; the total number of subjects involved was 533. The measurements included weight-for-height ratios and skinfolds, which are taken with a caliper that pinches the skin and measures fat stores located under the skin. Four convenient methods of assessing adiposity (fatness) that are used in screening for obesity were found to be very inconsistent in diagnosing the condition. Lack of agreement was noted within the group of weight-for-height measures, among skinfold indices, and between the two groups. The authors conclude that when screening junior high school students for obesity, the error involved in these measures should be considered, as should the negative psychological effects of incorrectly labeling a child as obese. More research is needed with a larger subject group to determine the accuracy of various obesity measures. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Obesity in children, Childhood obesity

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