World Health Organization – OBESITY
What is the “normal”weight of a person? How is it determined?
The normal (perhaps a better term is “healthy”) weight for an individual is actually a function of age, gender, and height. Charts published by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) represent the weights and heights for American children. Most of these charts show the healthy weight for a child, although some are actual measurements of weights of children in the United States and represent the “real” weights but not necessarily healthy weights. A complete set of charts from the CDC is available at: http://www.cdc.gov/growthcharts
Online calculators are also available to do the math for you. This calculator will take your child’s gender, age, height, and weight and give you the percentile that he or she is now and what the “ideal” body weight should be: http://pediatrics.about.com/cs/growthcharts2/l/bl_ibw_calc.htm
The data in the charts are arranged by age and gender and are placed into “percentiles.” A percentile is the percentage of the population that weighs a given amount or less.
Many authorities feel that on the average, Americans are too heavy.
If height matters, then how do you account for height in finding a normal or healthy weight?
Yes, height matters. The charts and calculator previously noted account for height. An easy way to find the healthy weight for your child has been developed and takes into account both weight and height. It is called the body mass index (BMI). The calculation is a bit complex. It is figured by taking the weight in kilograms (kg) divided by the height in meters squared (m2). This works easily in the metric system but is a little more complicated in the pounds/inches American system.
The formula is as follows:
BMI = 105X703/61X61=73,815/3,721=19.8
An easier way to find this is by using an already created calculator. The BMI is not in and of itself a measure of fat in the body. Other, more complicated ways of doing that, including measuring skin-fold thickness, are available. Nonetheless, the BMI for most people is a very good tool for evaluating excess weight.
Terms:
Body mass index (BMI) – A number calculated from height and weight that is used to determine whether a person is in the “normal” weight, underweight, overweight, or obese range.
Fat – See also lipids. One gram of fat contains and produces nine calories of energy. As an adjective and colloquially, it refers to being overweight or obese.
I heard that waist circumference is important. What does it mean if my child has a large waist size?
Excessive abdominal (stomach, belly) fat has a worse health prognosis than fat distributed elsewhere on the body. A male with a waistline over 40 inches or a nonpregnant female with a waist of more than 35 inches is at a higher risk of developing such medical conditions as diabetes mellitus, elevated cholesterol and triglycerides, hypertension, and coronary artery (heart) disease.
Thus, it is not just the weight that matters, but also the weight distribution. Weight around the waist is worse than excess pounds in, say, the legs. Metabolic syndrome is a condition that is sometimes seen in adults. This is cluster of risk factors for heart disease and stroke and includes the following:
• Excess abdominal fat
• Abnormal blood lipids (fats), including high triglycerides, decreased high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, and elevated low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol
• Insulin resistance/high blood sugar
• High blood pressure
• Elevated markers of inflammation such as blood C-reactive protein
The key problems with the metabolic syndrome are obesity and insulin resistance. It is estimated that 50 million people in the United States have this syndrome, which the American Heart Association defines as follows:
• Waistline: men ≥ 40 inches (102 cm) and women ≥ 35 inches (88 cm)
• Elevated triglycerides ≥ 150 mg/dL
• Reduced HDL (“good”) cholesterol: men < 40 mg/dL and women < 50 mg/dL
• High blood pressure ≥ 130/85 mm Hg
• Elevated fasting blood glucose ≥ 100 mg/dL
Key to treating this is prevention of obesity in children. After a person has this syndrome, the goals are to lose weight, treat the elevated blood pressure and sugar, increase exercise, and go on a diet low in saturated and trans fats and cholesterol.
Terms:
Diabetes mellitus – A complex disease of small blood vessels and glucose metabolism. It is manifested by elevated levels of sugar (glucose) in the blood. Long-term adverse consequences include kidney failure, cataracts, poor circulation leading to heart attacks, strokes, leg ulcers, and other serious problems.
Cholesterol – A fat (lipid) that is an essential part of the membranes of cells. It is made by the body as well as ingested with food. It is a steroid and is necessary for life, but an excess can produce atherosclerosis leading to vascular and other diseases including heart attacks and strokes.
Triglycerides – Lipids or fats composed of three molecules of fatty acid attached to one molecule of glycerol. Elevated levels have been associated with the development of serious medical diseases.
Hypertension – An elevation of the pressures in the heart and arteries, which can lead to severe disease including heart attacks and strokes. Also called high blood pressure.
Coronary artery (heart) disease – A disease of the arteries of the heart in which the deposition of plaque (cholesterol, calcium, and other compounds) progressively blocks the flow of blood to the heart, which can lead to chest pain (angina pectoris) and myocardial infarction (heart attack).
