Arkansas Blog

WTF were we thinking. Huckabee didn't help much on any front. It's always about fame and self promotion.

BMI is the most misguided and faulty measurement of body weight.
Following the BMI, pro cyclist George Hincappe is overweight.

Yeah right.
BMI stands for Bullshit Measuring Index

There are some who say, well its just a guide line. It applies to the average person and not pro athletes. So tell me. If Pro athletes are exempt, would that include all pro athletes of all sports. Bowling, golf, NASCAR? If a rail thin pro cyclist like George is overweight according to BMI, I can't imagine more sedentary sport athletes would weigh in much better.

Duh.

Can you even imagine the changes needed for any meaningful gains here? You ready to close McDonalds or limit them to fruits, salads, and chicken sandwiches? Please. NO wonder this country is slipping away. You can get your denial in any color or flavor you like.

How much did this cost us, the taxpayers?
I am totally fed up with all the waste of my hard earned dollars.

People can tell between a FIT person who has extra pounds vs. a person who just has extra pounds. Obviously, not everyone who's "overweight" is fat.

But does that mean we should completely discard BMI measuring? No.

Let's be honest, if you're classified obese according to BMI, then chances are you are. It's a common epidemic in this state (including certain members of my family).

That said, BMI measurements simply tell us the first step, the situation: many people in this state are overweight, i.e. living unhealthy lifestyles. The second step is figuring out what programs or initiatives should be instituted to promote healthy lifestyles, especially among the youth.

P.S. Anyone here travel out of state? Ever notice how you can spot the Arkansas boarding gate by the proportion of overweight people relative to the airport as a whole?

BMI is simply a preliminary index for screening... It makes no distinction about body composition, e.g. that muscle mass weighs a good deal more than fat. Thus cyclist Hincapie (who hovers somewhere between 4 to 6% body fat during the racing season) is considered overweight if BMI is the only index used.

Granted, the vast majority of Americans, not just Arkansans, don't have that problem. A quick look at the Dunlap Factor (where your belly has done lapped over your belt) gives you the answer you were looking for in the first place. Agencies such as the armed forces, where you can lose your job for being overweight, use a weight table as a screening factor, then use a measuring tape and calipers to determine % body fat as the primary measure if you're over the weight number for your age and height.

Me, I've been working on mine. Not fixated on the numbers since fat is being replaced by muscle mass, but keeping track of the shrinkage and how much "insulation" is left to be pinched in the pertinent places.

BMI. Please. This thing is so generic and inaccurate it is next to meaningless. When you can do better with a mirror you are just wasting time and money. Get a clue. IF this is an issue then deal with it, If not, forget it.

Think about the egregious encroachment on instructional time for schools as they are required to line every little darling up and weigh them. Then school staff is responsible for developing and mailing individual letters to parents that say, "ummm, I am sure you haven't noticed it, but your child is grossly obese." This has no business being in the schools, this is a health matter that is the responsibility of parents and the health care provider of their choice. This was a great way to get a captive research pool for UAMS. In what other kinds of studies will our public school children be legislatively mandated to participate?

this report is six months old, and was reported 6 months ago. Yawn.