Is it healthier to be overweight or underweight?

Question

Well neither is healthy. I mean, is it WORSE to be overweight or underweight?

Answer 1

What's healthy?
Dr Susan Jebb

We've all been told about the dangers of being too fat or too thin, but how do you tell if your size is putting your health at risk or how much you should really weigh? We look at some of the best ways of assessing whether it's time to take action.



In this article

What's your BMI?
Are you underweight?
Are you healthy but unhappy?




Being too thin or too fat is unhealthy, but good health is about much more than just your weight. It depends on many things, including your family's medical history, your genes, whether you smoke, the type of food you eat and how active you are. It's therefore difficult to set an exact ideal healthy weight that applies to everyone.


Many people have a distorted perception of what constitutes a healthy body weight

Many people have a distorted perception of what constitutes a healthy body weight. We're surrounded by images of glamorous people, many of whom are in fact underweight. Looking at yourself in the mirror isn't a very useful way to assess whether you're a healthy weight either. Most people compare themselves with others rather than by objective standards.

What's your BMI?
Doctors check your body size by measuring your weight and height. This calculation is known as the body mass index (BMI). Research has shown that people within a certain range of body size tend to live the longest and enjoy the best health. You can check whether you have a healthy weight for your height using our body mass index calculator, available in both metric and imperial versions.

The BMI ranges are as follows:

Recommended BMI Chart
Underweight BMI less than 18.5
Ideal BMI 18.5-25
Overweight BMI 25-30
Obese - should lose weight BMI 30-40
Very obese - lose weight now BMI greater than 40


IMPORTANT: Please note that BMI is not as accurate if you are an athlete or very muscled (muscle weighs more than fat), as it can push you into a higher BMI category despite having a healthy level of body fat. It is also not accurate for women who are pregnant or breastfeeding, or people who are frail.

The BMI Calculator is only one guide about your overall health. Waist measurement, body fat level, blood pressure, cholesterol, physical activity, not smoking and the healthiness of your diet are also important. You need to get the whole picture.

Another method of assessing whether you're a healthy weight is to measure your waist. A measurement of more than 94cm (37in) for men and 80cm (32in) for women suggests you should try not to gain any more weight. An extra 8cm (3in) is an indication that your health will probably improve if you lose a little weight.

It's important to remember, however, that both these are only one measure of your health. Body fat percentage, blood pressure, resting heart rate, cholesterol and other measurements are at least as important. You need to get the whole picture.

Are you underweight?
We all know that being overweight can put your health at risk, but it can also suffer if you weigh too little.

If you're underweight because of a restriction of your diet, you're at risk of a number of nutritional deficiencies. Young women especially are at risk of anaemia - a lack of iron - while insufficient calcium can lay the foundation for osteoporosis later in life. Amenorrhoea (missing menstrual periods) is also common among women who are underweight and can lead to infertility.

For more information, see Do you need to gain weight?

Are you healthy but unhappy?
If your weight lies within the healthy range but you're unhappy with your shape, you're likely to derive more benefits from a supervised exercise programme than by restricting your food. This will improve your fitness, help to tone specific muscle groups and enhance your overall health and wellbeing. Plan your diet to optimise your health.

Answer 2

okay lets first draw the line between obesity and overweight. Obesity can be deadly while overweight on the other hand, isn't that serious. the medical charts do not repressent every build and shape, so being slightly overweight or underweight isnt a big deal. For example, say for your height, the chart says that you should be between 145-155 but you are 160 or 165 or your 140 or 135.....both are only serious when impacts your health. there are many cases when people are under or overweight and perfectly healthy. It simply depends on you

Answer 3

Know if you need to lose weight

Health specialist use a measure called BMI, short for Body Mass Index. Body mass index (BMI)

is a measure of body fat based on height and weight that applies to both adult men and women.

This gives a good measure of your total body fat. BMI compares your height and weight. It

shows if you are underweight, at a healthy weight, or overweight.

You know how many pounds are there in 1 kg. Do not know let me help you, it is 1 kilogram =

2.20462262 pounds. Check out what your BMI is by using the BMI calculator.

http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/bmi/adult_BMI/english_bmi_calculator/bmi_calculator.htm

BMI Category
Below 18.5 Underweight
Between 18.5 - 24.9 Healthy Weight
Between 25 - 29.9 Overweight
Over 30 Obese


Look at the BMI chart to find out how much weight you need to lose to move from obese to

overweight or from overweight into a healthy range. Knowing this can help you set a good

weight loss goal.

Answer 4

uhh id say neither but id go with overwieght becuz being underwight means u are depriving ur ody of nutrients and the things it needs to function with, being overweight is sometimes not grossly overweight but like maybe ten pounds over the norm, but try to maintain a good healthy weight by calculating ur BMI ur body mass index online from any health site it goes by ur height and weight if ur about 5'6 u shuld be baout like 145 ish or so 150 maybe i dontk nw ur height or weightbut either way id say just be happy with how u lok while stayign healthy!

Answer 5

neither, be overweigh affect your health in cholesterol, diabetes, high blood presure. underweight affect the body bcz you dont recive the enough nutrients, and you can get anemia and desnutrition. I prefer overweight, bcz it dont produce so much damage as underweight. but if you want, have your ideal weight, you can find a chart of ideal weigh on the net.

Answer 6

Its unhealthy to be either but, if you are overweight you are prone to heart failure, stroke, diabetes, and its much harder to become thin then to be thin then become fatter. These overweight side effects are also present for people who are underweight but, diabetes can come when your fat and not dissapear when you become healthy. Most side effects from being to thin will dissapear when you gain weight and become healthy

Answer 7

It depends upon how under weight it is. But, its better to be underweight to a point. They both damage the heart though.

Answer 8

I don't think it's healthier to be either, but if I had to choose, I guess I would pick underweight.

Answer 9

It's better to be slightly overweight. No need for long explaination. It's just true. Just take in activity that keeps cardio vascular system in shape, and enjoy your plumpness!

Answer 10

Its healthier to be moderate.Not too much overweighted nor underweighted.Moderate person remains healthier and active.