overweight or obese? It’s a story of numbers
The term “obesity” gets thrown around a lot, and sometimes it may not be clear what it means. Does it refer to anyone who is overweight or has some excess weight to lose? Or is it more than that? Well, there is a medical definition of obesity, as well as for the term overweight.
The medical definition for overweight is based on body mass index (BMI). BMI is measured in units of kg/m2, which means that it requires height and weight for the calculation. BMI calculators are readily available to use, such as the one offered right here. Just enter your information to learn your BMI.
More people are overweight today than ever before. In fact, almost 70 percent of Americans aged 20 and older are overweight. And of those, about one third are considered obese. Unfortunately, the problem has become much more common in children, too. Surprisingly, 17 percent of children aged 6-19 are obese, and 10 percent of children aged 2-5.
What is the difference between overweight and being obese?
Being overweight or obese are both terms for having more body fat than what is considered healthy. Both are used to identify people who are at risk for health problems from having too much body fat. However, the term “obese” generally means a much higher amount of body fat than “overweight.”
Everyone needs some body fat for energy, heat insulation, and other body functions. But having too much can lead to serious health problems. The more body fat you have, the greater your risk for diabetes, kidney disease, heart disease, and other problems.
What does BMI indicate?
Adults are grouped into the following categories based on BMI (body mass index):
- BMI less than 18.5: Underweight
- BMI 18.5 to 24.9: Healthy weight range
- BMI 25.0 to 29.9: Overweight
- BMI more than 30: Obese
- BMI 30–35: Moderately obese (Obese Class I)
- BMI 35–40: Severely obese (Obese Class II)
- BMI > 40: Morbidly obese (Obese Class III)
So, overweight is defined as a BMI of 25.0 – 29.9 kg/m2.1 A normal BMI is defined as falling between 18.5 and 24.9. Having a BMI lower than 18.5 classifies one as being underweight.
Obese vs overweight weight chart
| OBESITY | OVERWEIGHT | |
| What is it? | A disease marked by excessive generalized deposition and storage of fat, with a BMI (Body mass index) of over 30 | A condition where the person weighs more than what is considered normal for that height, age and sex |
| BMI range | A person is considered obese when BMI is over 30 | A person is considered overweight when their BMI is between 25 and 29.9 |
| Risk factors | Coronary heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, hypertension… | Depression, high blood pressure… |
| Main causes | More intake, eating fast foods, stress, depression, hormonal imbalance, sedentary lifestyle… | More intake of food than is expended by the body, genetics… |
| Occurrence | More than 300 million people are obese across the world | Around 1 billion people are estimated to be overweight across the globe. |
| Geographically | More prominent and on the increase in North America, the United Kingdom, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, the Pacific Islands, Australasia and China | Globally |
Losing weight early improve health
Many studies have shown that the likelihood of poorer health outcomes (in terms of such diseases as cancer, cardiovascular disease, obstructive sleep apnea, diabetes, high blood pressure, and others), as well as overall premature death, increases as BMI increases.2 And the clinical definition of obesity (BMI of 30.0 or greater) is used in many cases to determine appropriate treatment options.
WHO conclude Overweight or Obesity represent a major risk for adults or children health.
Many studies throughout the world are agreeing to say it’s a greater emphasis on treating obesity and overweight as early as possible to get good results on health improvement.
If you want to start now to lose weight and improve your health, follow My Secret Pound method recommended by healthcare professional.