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So, what is morbid obesity, and why do we care? I could bore you with Greek or Latin derivatives—such as, morbid means death and obesity means fat, and you might conclude that morbid obesity means death fat. That is a cute interpretation but also accurate. I can even assign figures to morbid obesity—or I can tell you what a Supreme Court member said about pornography and apply it to morbid obesity—“I know it when I see it.”
We all know the upper end of morbid obesity when we see it
A 500-pound person is hard not to notice. However, not many of my patients weigh 500 pounds. Most are between 200 and 300 pounds. One question my patients ask is, just how morbidly obese do they have to be to have surgery? We have a way of calculating your height-to-weight ratio. It is called the body mass index. If your height and weight reach a certain level, then you are eligible for weight loss surgery. If your body mass index is over 40, you are eligible for surgery. If it is over 35 and you have certain "co-morbidities," you are eligible for surgery.
How we measure obesity - or when am I seriously overweight?
Okay—finally, Dr. Simpson, give us something
Body Mass Index - both the National Institute of Health (NIH) and the World Health Organization (WHO) endorse BMI (Body Mass Index) as the measurement of obesity.
The formula is: BMI = weight in kg / height in meters X height in meters.
| Underweight | BMI < 18.5 kg/m² |
| Normal Range | BMI 18.5-24.9 kg/m² |
| Overweight | BMI 25- 30 kg/m² |
| Class 1 obesity | BMI 30- 34.9 kg/m² |
| Class II obesity (aka morbid obesity) | BMI 35 – 39.9 kg/m² |
| Class III obesity | BMI 40 -49.9 kg/m² |
| Class IV obesity | BMI > 50 kg/m² |
Body Mass Index Chart
| Height | BMI 35 | BMI 40 | BMI 45 | BMI 50 |
| 4’ 10" | 167 | 191 | 215 | 239 |
| 4’ 11" | 174 | 198 | 223 | 248 |
| 5’ 0" | 179 | 205 | 230 | 256 |
| 5’ 1" | 185 | 212 | 238 | 265 |
| 5’ 2" | 191 | 219 | 246 | 273 |
| 5’ 3" | 198 | 226 | 254 | 282 |
| 5’ 4’" | 204 | 233 | 262 | 291 |
| 5’ 5" | 211 | 241 | 271 | 301 |
| 5’ 6" | 217 | 248 | 279 | 310 |
| 5’ 7" | 224 | 256 | 288 | 320 |
| 5’ 8" | 230 | 263 | 296 | 329 |
| 5’ 9" | 237 | 271 | 305 | 338 |
| 5’ 10" | 244 | 279 | 313 | 348 |
| 5’ 11" | 251 | 287 | 322 | 358 |
| 6’ 0" | 259 | 295 | 332 | 369 |
| 6’ 1" | 265 | 303 | 341 | 379 |
| 6’ 2" | 272 | 311 | 350 | 389 |
| 6’ 3" | 280 | 320 | 360 | 400 |
| 6’ 4" | 288 | 329 | 370 | 411 |
People with a BMI >27
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