Are you a healthy size? Use our tool to find your BMI

In a world of ultra-processed foods and eating on-the-go, it’s increasingly challenging to stay at a healthy weight. If you’re worried you’re carrying a few extra pounds, you probably are. And your body mass index (BMI) – a simple measure based on a person’s weight in kilograms divided by their height in metres – is a helpful indicator.

Measuring BMI has been around for years after a Belgian statistician and sociologist Adolphe Quetelet devised the basis of it in the 19th century, and it’s now used across the world. All you need to do to find out yours is type in your weight and height and – if you know it – waist circumference and you’re instantly told your BMI.

Where do you sit on the chart?

If your body weight falls between 25 and 30 you are technically “overweight”. Anything higher than 30 is described as “obesity”. And if your BMI is above 40 you would earn yourself a particularly offensive definition of being “morbidly obese,” which bodes as well for your health and longevity as the name suggests. “Excess weight” is the umbrella term used for anyone with a BMI over 25.

Statistically, nearly three quarters of people aged between 45-74 are either overweight or obese according to the health survey for England published in 2022. Men fared the worst, with 68.6 per cent falling into these two categories, compared with 59 per cent of women. In the United States, nearly one in three adults are overweight and 84 per cent of men and 81 per cent of women have an unhealthy BMI.

“BMI is a simple tool that is non-invasive and inexpensive,” says Penny Weston, a fitness and nutrition expert. “The fact that it’s instant offers a quick snapshot of whether your weight might be affecting your health risks. The NHS recommends that for most adults the ideal BMI is in the 18.5 to 24.9 range.”

“The list of potentially serious health conditions that obesity increases is long,” says Dr Tom Oates, a consultant physician. “They include high blood pressure and high cholesterol, Type 2 diabetes, gallstones, asthma, osteoporosis, liver and kidney disease and several types of cancer including of the bowel, breast and womb.”