New Measure of Obesity Better at Predicting Mortality Risk

Lisa Franchi January 04, 2016

For decades, doctors and health experts relied on the body mass index (BMI) in measuring obesity, which looks at the person’s weight relative to his or her height. Now, scientists from West Virginia University developed a more accurate measurement of obesity which considers four aspects: body surface, trunk circumference, height and waist.

Currently, experts use BMI to identify whether a person is underweight, normal, overweight or obese. But the use of BMI as a measure of obesity has sparked debates since then. The new study found that it doesn’t account for different body shapes and sizes, and therefore does not provide an accurate reflection of obesity. One school of thought suggests that it is flawed, failing to take into account serious problems such body shape and the distribution of fat.

In the study, researchers examined data from more than 11,808 subjects, with age ranging from 18 to 85. From the analysis, the scientists determined that there should be a new body shape index constructed from anthropometric determinants of body shape and body size.

The BMI provides a simple coarse measure of the body shape.’ researchers said.

BMI provides a simple, coarse measure of body shape... the distribution of body weight, rather than the absolute weight, is a key factor in predicting health risk

Two people in the same BMI category could have very different body shapes, and different body sizes.

The distribution of body weight, rather than the absolute weight, is a key factor in predicting health risk.

They also note that waist circumference is often combined with the BMI for an improved assessment of body shape – while other measurements add waist-to-height ratio.

In the study, researchers considered both the body size and shape simultaneously, and combined the body service area and trunk circumference with height and waist circumference to create the SBSI.

Their findings revealed that SBSI was a better predictor of all-cause mortality than BMI.

The researchers also found that SBSI generally increases with age – although its increments vary by gender.

SBSI is generally linear with age, and increases with increasing mortality, when compared with other popular anthropometric indices of body shape.’

The study was published in the journal Plos One.

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Could this mark the end of BMI? New obesity measure ’is better at predicting risk of early death - accounting for body shape, not just height and weight