Revise BMI formula to avoid incorrect classification of tall and short people

• Petition
• Statistics

Petition Action

Revise BMI formula to avoid incorrect classification of tall and short people

Additional Information

In light of the analysis of background to the currently used BMI figure described here: http://bit.ly/VJNKCO it is clear that the current formula, which uses an exponent of 2, rather than 2.5, is prone to identify tall people as obese when they are not, and fails to identify obese people who are short. The only reason for using an exponent of 2 was that it made calculations simpler – relevant in the 19th century, but hardly so today!

Given the importance of obesity as a health issue in the modern world, it is vital that people get clear and accurate information about their weight, and whether or not they have a weight problem.

We therefore petition the government to instruct the NHS, NICE and other UK organisations that use the BMI to identify weight issues, to move to the use of a revised formula that more accurately reflects the relationship between height and weight in the normal adult population, and to also raise this concern with the WHO.

---

You can't sign this petition because it is now closed. But you can still comment on it here at Repetition.me!

Have your say on this petition!

comments powered by Disqus