Your doctor will probably work out your body mass index (BMI for short) and your waist and hip measurements.

 

 

 

 

 

Source:
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, and the North American Association for the Study of Obesity.
The practical guide: identification, evaluation and treatment of overweight and obesity in adults.
October 2000. Available at http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/guidelines/obesity/prctgd_c.pdf (accessed on 20 April 2009).

 

 

 

 

 

¹

 

 

 

 

 

Source:
Kopelman PG.
An integrated approach to the management of overweight and obesity.
In: Kopelman PG (editor). Management of obesity and related disorders. Martin Dunitz, London, UK; 2001.

 

 

 

 

 

² These figures can help your doctor decide whether your weight is likely to seriously affect your health.

 

 

 

 

 

Source:
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, and the North American Association for the Study of Obesity.
The practical guide: identification, evaluation and treatment of overweight and obesity in adults.
October 2000. Available at http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/guidelines/obesity/prctgd_c.pdf (accessed on 20 April 2009).

 

 

 

 

 

¹ Your doctor will also ask about your general health and any other conditions you have.

To read more about what to expect, see Questions your doctor might ask.

There are several other tests that can measure how much fat you're carrying. But these tests aren't usually available in family clinics.

Most doctors will work out your BMI. It tells the doctor whether your weight is healthy. It's worked out according to both your height and weight.

Your doctor will weigh and measure you. These numbers go into a math formula that gives a single number. This is your BMI.

 

 

 

 

 

Source:
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, and the North American Association for the Study of Obesity.
The practical guide: identification, evaluation and treatment of overweight and obesity in adults.
October 2000. Available at http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/guidelines/obesity/prctgd_c.pdf (accessed on 20 April 2009).

 

 

 

 

 

¹

 

 

 

 

 

Source:
Seidell JC, Flegal KM.
Assessing obesity: classification and epidemiology.
British Medical Bulletin. 1997; 53: 238-252.

 

 

 

 

 

³ You can work out your own BMI. This table shows what different BMI scores mean.

Working out someone's BMI isn't a perfect way of telling if they are overweight. For example, an athlete who's very muscular might have a BMI that suggests they're overweight, even though they're healthy. That's because muscle is heavier than fat. However, for most people, working out their BMI is a quick and simple way of finding whether their weight is healthy.

A study comparing BMI with electrical measuring of people's body fat found that, if anything, BMI measures underestimate how many people are overweight or obese.

 

 

 

 

 

Source:
Romero-Corral A, Somers VK, Sierra-Johnson J, et al.
Accuracy of body mass index in diagnosing obesity in the adult general population.
International Journal of Obesity. 2008; 32(6): 959-66.

 

 

 

 

 

⁴

If your doctor thinks your BMI might be misleading, he or she can take other measurements to work out if you're overweight.

It's not only how much fat you have that matters. Your risk of getting conditions such as heart disease and diabetes also depends on where you carry this fat.

People who are "apple-shaped," with a lot of fat around their waist and chest, are more likely to get these conditions then people who carry weight on their hips and buttocks ('pear-shaped').

The table below shows how your waist measurement can affect your chance of getting health problems.

 

 

 

 

 

Source:
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, and the North American Association for the Study of Obesity.
The practical guide: identification, evaluation and treatment of overweight and obesity in adults.
October 2000. Available at http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/guidelines/obesity/prctgd_c.pdf (accessed on 20 April 2009).

 

 

 

 

 

¹

 

 

 

 

 

Source:
Seidell JC, Flegal KM.
Assessing obesity: classification and epidemiology.
British Medical Bulletin. 1997; 53: 238-252.

 

 

 

 

 

³

 

 

 

 

 

Source:
Noel PH, Pugh JA.
Management of overweight and obese adults.
BMJ. 2002; 325: 757-761.

 

 

 

 

 

⁵ The numbers we give are for a measurement taken just above the top of your hips, roughly at the level of your belly button. It might not be the same as your clothes size.

Your doctor might want to work out your waist-hip ratio. It's your waist measurement divided by your hip measurement.

For example, if your waist is 34 inches and your hips are 40 inches, your waist-hip ratio is 0.85.

If you're a man, you're at high risk of health problems if:

 

 

 

 

 

Source:
Rosenbaum M, Leibel RL, Hirsch J.
Obesity.
New England Journal of Medicine. 1997; 337: 396-407.

 

 

 

 

 

⁶

If you're a woman, you're at high risk of health problems if:

 

 

 

 

 

Source:
Rosenbaum M, Leibel RL, Hirsch J.
Obesity.
New England Journal of Medicine. 1997; 337: 396-407.

 

 

 

 

 

⁶

Your doctor might check whether you have a medical condition that is causing you to put on weight. For example, you might have a problem with your

 

 

 

 

 

thyroid gland
Your thyroid gland is a small organ that sits in your neck, just in front of your windpipe. It sends out a hormone called thyroxine. This acts on receptors within cells. By acting on the receptors it gives the cells a message to speed up their metabolism and work harder.

 

 

 

 

 

thyroid gland. This gland makes

 

 

 

 

 

hormones
Hormones are chemicals that are made in certain parts of the body. They travel through the bloodstream and have an effect on other parts of the body. For example, the female sex hormone estrogen is made in a woman's ovaries. Estrogen has many different effects on a woman's body. It makes the breasts grow at puberty and helps control periods. It is also needed to get pregnant.

 

 

 

 

 

hormones that change the way your body uses energy.

Women might have a condition called

 

 

 

 

 

polycystic ovary syndrome
Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS for short) is a problem that affects a woman's ovaries. Eggs stored in the ovaries grow into small lumps called cysts. This can stop the eggs leaving the ovary and can cause infertility. Women with PCOS also have an imbalance in their hormones.

 

 

 

 

 

polycystic ovary syndrome. This can cause women to gain weight.

See Conditions that can cause obesity.

Your doctor might also run tests to see if you have conditions that can be made worse by your weight. For example, you might need tests for high blood pressure, diabetes or high cholesterol.

If you have one of these extra conditions, losing weight might be even more important for your health.

 

 

 

 

 

Source:
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, and the North American Association for the Study of Obesity.
The practical guide: identification, evaluation and treatment of overweight and obesity in adults.
October 2000. Available at http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/guidelines/obesity/prctgd_c.pdf (accessed on 20 April 2009).

 

 

 

 

 

¹

 

 

 

 

 

Source:
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.
Clinical guidelines on the identification, evaluation and treatment of overweight and obesity in adults.
Available at http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/guidelines (accessed 20 April 2009).

 

 

 

 

 

⁷

 

 

 

 

 

Source:
Expert panel on the identification, evaluation, and treatment of overweight and obesity in adults.
Executive summary of the clinical guidelines on the identification, evaluation, and treatment of overweight and obesity in adults.
Archives of Internal Medicine. 1998; 158: 1855-1867.

 

 

 

 

 

⁸

You and your doctor might decide that your weight is a problem for your health. If you decide you would like to lose weight, you and your doctor will need to draw up a weight loss program. This could include:

 

 

 

 

 

Source:
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, and the North American Association for the Study of Obesity.
The practical guide: identification, evaluation and treatment of overweight and obesity in adults.
October 2000. Available at http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/guidelines/obesity/prctgd_c.pdf (accessed on 20 April 2009).

 

 

 

 

 

¹

 

 

 

 

 

Source:
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.
Clinical guidelines on the identification, evaluation and treatment of overweight and obesity in adults.
Available at http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/guidelines (accessed 20 April 2009).

 

 

 

 

 

⁷

 

 

 

 

 

Source:
Expert panel on the identification, evaluation, and treatment of overweight and obesity in adults.
Executive summary of the clinical guidelines on the identification, evaluation, and treatment of overweight and obesity in adults.
Archives of Internal Medicine. 1998; 158: 1855-1867.

 

 

 

 

 

⁸

To read more about losing weight, see What treatments work for obesity?

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