Calculating Obesity

         Are you one of the many who want to lose weight?  Would you love to feel healthy and content in your own skin, to hear people commenting on your newly svelte figure?

         Hearing compliments about one’s physical appearance is a definite mood-booster, whereas depression is often triggered by looking in the mirror and being greeted by the sight of excess pounds.

         Weight loss and fitness are attention-grabbing topics, generating endless conversation among close girlfriends. Newfangled ways of slimming down are perpetually surfacing, and the media inundates the public with information on how to lose weight and images of the Western world’s slim ideal.

          Carrying extra pounds can ignite a host of life-impacting consequences. For example, if you are one of the myriad people hoping to find a serious romantic relationship but are insecure about being overweight, you may shy away from the search for a partner and instead daydream about finding love once you’ve trimmed your body.

           Perhaps you love clothes and are depressed that extra weight prevents you from wearing the fashions you adore.

           Or you might be suffering from the health problems associated with obesity.

          So how can we effectively facilitate weight loss and solve the emotional worries and health problems caused by carrying too many extra pounds?

          First of all, let’s define overweight. Excess pounds become full-fledged obesity when a person’s body weight is 20% higher than the acceptable norm. The standard currently used to measure obesity is the Body Mass Index (BMI). It is calculated by the following formula: body mass (kilos) divided by height squared (meters), i.e. BMI = body mass divided by height X height.

          Reflected in the newly designed Asian Obesity Guide, research has shown that the international BMI upper limit (24.9) is too high for Asians, who have a smaller body type than Caucasians. The Guide posits that the healthy, normal BMI range for Asian adults is 18.5-22.9. If an Asian person’s BMI exceeds 23, they are overweight; if it exceeds 30, they are obese.

           Therefore…take out your calculator to find out whether the topic of obesity should be of concern to you.