Thread: Obesity
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Old 06-29-2012, 10:16 PM   #52
bcsoda
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Oh, and just a note on BMI since it's been brought up in this thread: BMI was created by a mathematician who was using it solely to get statistics about communities in his quest to define the "normal man". He had no interest in health or fat, and the formula was never meant to be used on individuals as a way of assessing health. It is completely ineffective at actually determing the level of fat a person is carrying (" For example, Kline showed that in a sample of 1,000 people from Central Massachusetts, for a BMI of 35 the average percent body fat was around 32. However, individuals with a BMI of 35 had a range of body fat percentages from 18 to 47!") and whether or not that person is in good health. Dr's continue to use it because it is quick and cost effective. Diagnosing someone as obese (and thus "unhealthy") takes about 30 seconds by having them jump on the scale and then looking at their little chart to determine their BMI - why would anyone trust a medical diagnosis of "unhealthy" that took 30 seconds, a scale, a piece of paper, and no actual tests done to truly determine the person's health?
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