New analysis introduced at this 12 months’s European Congress on Weight problems (ECO 2025, Malaga, Spain, 11–14 Could) reveals that the internationally acknowledged physique mass index (BMI) cut-off factors vastly overestimate chubby and weight problems in male athletes. The research, from Italy, additionally proposes new cut-off factors for chubby and weight problems on this group.
The research has been printed within the journal Vitamins.
Physique mass index (BMI) is a key methodology for measuring individuals’s weight standing, defining whether or not they have regular weight, chubby or weight problems. It’s simply calculated by dividing a person’s weight in kilograms by the sq. of their peak in meters.
A BMI of 25 kg/m2 or above is an indicator of chubby and a BMI of 30 kg/m2 or above signifies weight problems in white women and men of all ages, in line with the World Well being Group’s (WHO) categorization system.
Nonetheless, some analysis has discovered that this classification system might not be good at figuring out chubby and weight problems in athletes and its use on this group has lengthy been topic to criticism.
“BMI does not distinguish between physique fats and lean mass, which incorporates muscle,” explains Professor Marwan El Ghoch, of the Division of Biomedical, Metabolic and Neural Sciences, College of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy.
“In consequence, a muscular athlete with low physique fats might be wrongly labeled as residing with chubby or weight problems. Regardless of this, many sports activities organizations nonetheless depend on the standard BMI classification system.”
In a brand new research, Professor El Ghoch and researchers from the College of Verona in Italy and Beirut College in Lebanon got down to decide how correct the BMI cut-offs of 25 and 30 kg/m2 are at figuring out chubby and weight problems in male athletes and, in the event that they had been discovered to be inaccurate, to determine higher cut-offs.
The cross-sectional research concerned 622 males (common age of 25.7 years, BMI ≥ 20 kg/m2) who had been referred to the Division of Neurosciences, Biomedicine and Motion Sciences, of the College of Verona, Italy, and took part in sports activities together with soccer, rugby, basketball, volleyball, cross-fit, karate and others at a aggressive stage.
The contributors had been categorized utilizing the present BMI system and by their physique fats proportion (BF%).
Utilizing the present BMI system, greater than 1 / 4 of the people had been categorized as residing with chubby or weight problems. Some 451 (72.5%) people had been of regular weight (BMI 18.5–24.99 kg/m2), 148 (23.8%) people had been with chubby (25 kg/m2–29.9 kg/m2) and 23 (3.7%) had been with weight problems (30 kg/m2 and above).
Complete physique fats proportion (BF%) was measured utilizing twin X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) scans—identified to be a extremely correct software for measuring physique composition—in line with age- and gender-specific cut-off factors. A BF% of 21% or above was labeled as chubby and a BF% of 26% or above was labeled as weight problems.
Utilizing this technique, fewer than 4% of the people had been categorized as residing with chubby or weight problems. Some 598 (96.1%) people had been of regular weight, 19 (3.1%) had been with chubby and 5 (0.8%) had been with weight problems.
Professor El Ghoch, who led the research, says, “This demonstrates that the present BMI cut-off factors are clearly flawed in figuring out weight standing in athletes, as most of the athletes had been misclassified as residing with chubby or weight problems, the place, in actuality, only a few had physique fats ranges on this vary.”
The researchers went on to make use of statistical modeling to determine extra correct BMI cut-off factors for younger male athletes. The brand new cut-offs, which consider athletes’ decrease BF%, are 28.2 kg/m2 for chubby and 33.7 kg/m2 for weight problems.
Research co-author, Professor Chiara Milanese, of the College of Verona, explains, “Though DXA scans measure physique composition precisely, they aren’t all the time obtainable in sports activities settings. In distinction, weight and peak, the 2 measures wanted to calculate BMI, are straightforward to acquire and, with the brand new BMI cut-offs that we recognized, BMI might be a extremely useful gizmo in sports activities golf equipment, each at coaching grounds and in competitions.
“A direct evaluation of physique composition stays the gold normal however, in its absence, we encourage sports activities organizations and committees to undertake the brand new BMI classification system.”
The authors add that a number of additional items of analysis are wanted. These embrace figuring out new cut-offs for feminine athletes and, probably, particular cut-offs for various sports activities, significantly people who weren’t included within the present research.
Extra data:
Chiara Milanese et al, Revising BMI Lower-Off Factors for Chubby and Weight problems in Male Athletes: An Evaluation Based mostly on Multivariable Mannequin-Constructing, Vitamins (2025). DOI: 10.3390/nu17050908
Offered by
European Affiliation for the Research of Weight problems
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Analysis identifies new cut-off factors for chubby and weight problems in male athletes (2025, April 18)
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