Skip directly to search Skip directly to A to Z list Skip directly to navigation Skip directly to page options Skip directly to site content Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. CDC twenty four seven. Saving Lives, Protecting People Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. CDC twenty four seven. Saving Lives, Protecting People Start of Search Controls Search Form Controls [X] (BUTTON) Cancel (BUTTON) Submit Submit ____________________Search the CDC CDC A-Z Index * MENU * CDC A-Z * SEARCH * A * B * C * D * E * F * G * H * I * J * K * L * M * N * O * P * Q * R * S * T * U * V * W * X * Y * Z * # Start of Search Controls Search Form Controls [X] Search The CDC (BUTTON) Cancel (BUTTON) Submit Submit ____________________Search The CDC Overweight & Obesity Note: Javascript is disabled or is not supported by your browser. For this reason, some items on this page will be unavailable. For more information about this message, please visit this page: About CDC.gov. 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Submit What's this? Submit Button Submit Our Division * About Us * Nutrition * Physical Activity * Overweight & Obesity * Healthy Weight * Breastfeeding * Micronutrient Malnutrition * State and Local Programs Defining Adult Overweight and Obesity Recommend on Facebook Tweet Share ShareCompartir Weight that is higher than what is considered as a healthy weight for a given height is described as overweight or obese. Body Mass Index, or BMI, is used as a screening tool for overweight or obesity. Adult Body Mass Index (BMI) Body Mass Index (BMI) is a person's weight in kilograms divided by the square of height in meters. A high BMI can be an indicator of high body fatness. To calculate BMI, see the Adult BMI Calculator or determine BMI by finding your height and weight in this BMI Index Chart. * If your BMI is less than 18.5, it falls within the underweight range. * If your BMI is 18.5 to <25, it falls within the normal. * If your BMI is 25.0 to <30, it falls within the overweight range. * If your BMI is 30.0 or higher, it falls within the obese range. Obesity is frequently subdivided into categories: * Class 1: BMI of 30 to < 35 * Class 2: BMI of 35 to < 40 * Class 3: BMI of 40 or higher. Class 3 obesity is sometimes categorized as “extreme” or “severe” obesity. Note: At an individual level, BMI can be used as a screening tool but is not diagnostic of the body fatness or the health of an individual. A trained healthcare provider should perform appropriate health assessments in order to evaluate an individual's health status and risks. See the following table for an example. Height Weight Range BMI Considered 5' 9" 124 lbs or less Below 18.5 Underweight 125 lbs to 168 lbs 18.5 to 24.9 Healthy weight 169 lbs to 202 lbs 25.0 to 29.9 Overweight 203 lbs or more 30 or higher Obese 271 lbs or more 40 or higher Class 3 Obese BMI does not measure body fat directly, but research has shown that BMI is moderately correlated with more direct measures of body fat obtained from skinfold thickness measurements, bioelectrical impedance, underwater weighing, dual energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) and other methods ^1,2,3. Furthermore, BMI appears to be strongly correlated with various adverse health outcomes consistent with these more direct measures of body fatness^ 4,5,6,7,8,9. For more information about BMI, visit Body Mass Index . Definitions for Children and Teens * Visit the Child and Teen BMI Calculator or Basics About Childhood Obesity . References ^1Garrow, J.S. & Webster, J., 1985. Quetelet’s index (W/H2) as a measure of fatness. Int. J. Obes., 9(2), pp.147–153. ^2Freedman, D.S., Horlick, M. & Berenson, G.S., 2013. A comparison of the Slaughter skinfold-thickness equations and BMI in predicting body fatness and cardiovascular disease risk factor levels in children. Am. J. Clin. Nutr., 98(6), pp.1417–24. ^3Wohlfahrt-Veje, C. et al., 2014. Body fat throughout childhood in 2647 healthy Danish children: agreement of BMI, waist circumference, skinfolds with dual X-ray absorptiometry. Eur. J. Clin. Nutr., 68(6), pp.664–70. ^4Steinberger, J. et al., 2005. Comparison of body fatness measurements by BMI and skinfolds vs dual energy X-ray absorptiometry and their relation to cardiovascular risk factors in adolescents. Int. J. Obes., 29(11), pp.1346–1352. ^5Sun, Q. et al., 2010. Comparison of dual-energy x-ray absorptiometric and anthropometric measures of adiposity in relation to adiposity-related biologic factors. Am. J. Epidemiol., 172(12), pp.1442–1454. ^6Lawlor, D.A. et al., 2010. Association between general and central adiposity in childhood, and change in these, with cardiovascular risk factors in adolescence: prospective cohort study. BMJ, 341, p.c6224. ^7Flegal, K.M. & Graubard, B.I., 2009. Estimates of excess deaths associated with body mass index and other anthropometric variables. Am. J. Clin. Nutr., 89(4), pp.1213–1219. ^8Freedman, D.S. et al., 2009. Relation of body mass index and skinfold thicknesses to cardiovascular disease risk factors in children: the Bogalusa Heart Study. Am. J. Clin. Nutr., 90(1), pp.210–216. ^9Willett, K. et al., 2006. Comparison of bioelectrical impedance and BMI in predicting obesity-related medical conditions. Obes. (Silver Spring), 14(3), pp.480–490. Get Email Updates To receive email updates about this page, enter your email address: Enter Email Address ____________________ What's this? Submit What's this? 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