Medical mainstream easing up on BMI emphasis when it comes to weight management

February 29, 2024

BMI is BUNK when it comes to determining healthy weight

Friend, I know you may not be happy with that “spare tire”…

Your “muffin top”…

Or any of the other problem areas on your body that the internet has given cutesy names to. 

And I know that the number on the scale can deal a MIGHTY blow to your self-esteem…

Making you feel like a FAILURE when the numbers don’t go down… despite your BEST efforts.

But I have a CRUCIAL question for you today, my friend…

Do you REALLY need to lose weight? 

And if your answer is “yes”… are you sure?

The medical mainstream… and our modern society… has placed SO MUCH emphasis on HOW MUCH you weigh…

Or HOW HEAVY you are…

It’s like they’ve got BLINDERS on!

I prefer to look at the WHOLE story – the HOLISTIC point of view, which is rare to find among conventional docs but is part of what makes integrative medicine such a life-saving alternative for some folks. 

Turns out, mainstream weight measurements might actually be WRONG for you!

Here’s what the latest research says.

For one, your muscle mass is FAR more critical to your health than how much you weigh… or that “other” measurement, known as BMI (or body mass index). 

In fact, one study out of Rutgers University last year revealed that a slightly elevated BMI… conventionally considered “overweight”… was associated with a LOWER risk of death than a “perfect” BMI!

I wasn’t shocked… because I’ve been saying BMI is a BOGUS measurement of health for years!

But I was a little surprised to see that the American Medical Association is finally WAKING UP and smelling the coffee.

The ultra-mainstream group announced last year that docs should BACK OFF on using BMI as a measure of health!

That’s after three decades of being told that the ratio between height and weight was an indicator of obesity…

IGNORING the fact that some larger folks with a higher BMI might be pure muscle…

While some smaller folks with a lower BMI could be downright FLABBY!

That is one of the MAJOR contradictions of the medical mainstream…

And I’m glad it’s finally getting some attention. 

Truth is, it really depends on WHERE the fat is distributed in your body – namely, whether it’s visceral fat (a.k.a. the kind of belly fat that squeezes the life out of your organs) or “thunder thighs,” “back fat,” and so on.

That brings us to the measurements that DO matter… and that’s waist circumference and waist-to-hip ratio. 

Because the more fat you’ve got accumulating around the middle… the HIGHER your risk for heart disease… type 2 diabetes… and even early death.

Now, if you're a little older… you might be able to worry EVEN LESS about your weight.

Because believe it or not, a few extra pounds might actually be a GOOD thing… according to a study that found that in older folks, the lowest risk of death was in the MIDDLE range of BMI (between 22 and 32.9). 

So, it’s NOT a matter of “the lower the better”…

Even though mainstream medicine is constantly beating the “how low can you go?” drum when it comes to not only weight… but also blood pressure… blood sugar… and so on.

Now, I don’t think we need to ABANDON looking at BMI altogether. But remember that it’s just one perspective on the whole picture… not the end-all, be-all.

In pursuit of the truth,

Dr. Marc S. Micozzi, M.D., Ph.D.

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