Underweight

Underweight refers to a body weight that is less than a standard healthy weight range. Underweight is associated with health problems including osteoporosis (bone wasting disease), and in women menstrual irregularities and decreased fertility. You can be slightly underweight and still be healthy. Underweight is a concern if it is a result of an unintentional weight loss or illness.

We all seem to have a pretty good idea of what we would like to look like. An ideal goal of how one wants to look can range from the color and length of the hair to fitting into a certain size of clothing. When it comes to changing your weight though, things can get a little tougher.

Many people think they know how much they should weigh. This knowledge may stem from what you weighed at a time that you looked and felt your best. You can look at a variety of tables that will give you a varying degree of weights for good health, but which one do you go with?

Ideal Body Weight
One calculation that is still widely used for determining an appropriate weight is your Ideal Body Weight. This will give you information on ideal body weight for a normal amount of body fat in a person with your height, body frame size and age. Keep in mind that this weight may not be ideal for everyone. The knowledge you gain here may give you an initial target to move towards, but health experts no longer believe that reaching that target should be the primary goal for managing diabetes.

BMI (Body Mass Index)
Another calculation for determining the healthiness of your weight is the BMI. This measurement adjusts weight for height, since weight alone does not really determine whether a person is overweight or not. Most experts agree that a BMI of 25 should be the dividing line between a healthy weight and overweight. However, the one thing that BMI cannot tell you is your percentage of body fat. This is something to consider when you are calculating and interpreting your BMI. If your BMI is below 18.5, this may or may not be of concern. You can be slightly underweight and still be healthy. However, if you have recently lost weight without trying due to high blood sugars and/or illness, you should contact your doctor or healthcare team for assistance.

Percent Body Fat
The Percent Body Fat calculation is a measure of the percentage of our tissues that are fat. This information is important when evaluating your BMI. For instance, a weight lifting athlete may appear in the overweight or obese section for BMI, but actually have a very low percent body fat. Likewise, a person who appears to be at a good weight for height and fit within the normal BMI range may actually be carrying a significant amount of fat, because exercise is not part of his or her routine. This person has a higher risk of developing heart disease because of being more fat than lean. Experts agree that men should not exceed 20% to 25% body fat while women should not exceed 30% to 35% body fat. On the opposite end, men require between 3%-10% body fat and women 12% (more is required for pregnancy) to be healthy.

Waist Measurement
Waist measurement seems to be a good marker both for fat on the abdomen and for total fat in the body. All you need is a tape measure. To get an accurate measurement be sure the tape measure is placed at the smallest section of your waist (abdomen) or just above the navel. If you are a man and your waist measures more than 40 inches or women with a waist measurement greater than 35 inches, you have an increased risk for heart disease.

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