OBESITY AND WEIGHT
WHAT IS OBESITY AND HOW TO KNOW IF YOU ARE OVERWEIGHT?
The term obese describes a person who is very overweight, with a lot of body fat. The most widely used method to check if you are a healthy weight is body mass index (BMI), which is a measure of whether you're a healthy weight for your height.
HOW DO YOU MEASURE YOUR BMI?
You can use the NHS BMI Healthy Weight Calculator to work out your score. BMI is not used to diagnose obesity because people who are very muscular can have a high BMI without much fat. But, for most people, BMI is a useful indication of whether they're a healthy weight.
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You can use the NHS website to calculate your BMI:
BMI calculator | Check your BMI - NHS | Please fill in your details (www.nhs.uk)
WHAT ARE THE RISKS OF OBESITY?
Obesity can lead to a number of serious and potentially life-threatening conditions.
These include: diabetes, stroke, coronary heart disease and some types of cancer. Such physical changes to your body can also cause psychological problems such as depression.