A group of worldwide health experts has recommended expanding the definition of obesity beyond body mass index (BMI).
The Commission on Clinical Obesity, comprised of dozens of medical experts, proposes that the definition of obesity should consider existing health issues and body fat measurements in addition to BMI. The commission also recommends using the terms “pre-clinical” and “clinical” obesity to refine medical evaluations of the condition further.
Pre-clinical obesity involves storing excess fat without any related organ dysfunction. It does, however, imply an elevated risk of developing clinical obesity and other health issues, like type 2 diabetes.
“In other words, their organs are functioning well. They have no metabolic diseases, and they have a fairly good quality of life,” said Dr. Robert Kushner, a commissioner and professor of medicine and medical education at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine, told ABC News.
Clinical obesity, on the other hand, involves excess fat that is directly linked to reduced organ function or even one’s ability to conduct regular activities. Clinical obesity can result in life-threatening health problems, like kidney failure, heart attack, or stroke.
The report says obesity should be diagnosed using a combination of higher-than-normal BMI alongside at least one abnormal body fat measurement. Further, two or more abnormal body fat measurements, say the experts, should still result in an obesity diagnosis, even if the individual possesses a so-called healthy BMI.
This is not the first time BMI has been criticized.
In 2023, The Dallas Express reported that the American Medical Association (AMA) voted to transition away from BMI as an effective health gauge and recommended that other measurements be considered. For example, the body adiposity index measures body fat by assessing a person’s height relative to their hip circumference.
Presently, the World Health Organization defines obesity as a BMI of 30 or above in adults. The problem is that the measure does not consider body composition. Two individuals, for example, can be the same height and weight, but one may have substantially more fat and the other more muscle.
In 2024, adult obesity in the United States fell for the first time in 10 years, according to a study published in JAMA Health Forum. The South saw the biggest drop, according to the report. The region also had the highest usage of GLP-1’s, like Ozempic and Wegovy, leading the researchers to speculate whether the popular drug was the main driver for the drop.