What is a Healthy Weight?

 How reliable is BMI as an indicator of body fatness?

The correlation between the BMI number and body fatness is fairly strong, however the correlation varies by sex, race, and age

• ·         At the same BMI, women tend to have more body fat than men.

• ·         At the same BMI, older people, on average, tend to have more body fat than younger adults.

• ·         Highly trained athletes may have a high BMI because of increased muscularity rather than increased body fatness.

BMI is only one factor related to risk for disease, For assessing someone's likelihood of developing overweight- or obesity-related diseases. The individual's waist circumference (because abdominal fat is a predictor of risk for obesity-related diseases). Other risk factors the individual has for diseases and conditions associated with obesity (for example, high blood pressure or physical inactivity).

How to calculate how many kilocalories you need

1.      Multiply the weight (in pounds) ,

•       by 10 if you are not active physically,
•       by 15 if you are moderately active, and
•       by 20 if you are highly active

2.      Subtract one of the following amounts from the multiplication result

For example, if you are 25 years old, are highly active, and weigh 120 pounds, you will require 120 X 20 = 2,400 kilocalories daily to maintain weight. If you want to gain weight you will require more; to lose, you will require less. The amount is only a rough estimate.

Other factors, such as height, must be considered. A person 5 feet, 2 inches tall and active does not require as much energy as an active 6-footer whose body weight is the same.

Calorie value of food :

   a) Carbohydrate  -   4.4 k.cal/g.

   b) Fat                   -   9.3 k.cal/g. 
 c) Protein             -   4.0 k.cal/g.