VARYING BODY-MASS INDEX CUTOFF POINTS TO DESCRIBE OVERWEIGHT PREVALENCE AMONG US ADULTS - NHANES-III (1988 TO 1994)

Body mass index (BMI; kg/m(2)) distributions are commonly reported in the scientific literature to describe weight for stature, These data a re collected for various groups of subjects in local health and body c omposition studies, and comparisons with national distributions are of ten desirable, Tabular data for population prevalence estimates from t he third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III, 1988 to 1994) at selected gender- and age-specific BMI levels ranging from <18.0 to >45.0 are presented and compared with various examples of BMI criteria reported in the scientific literature, NHANES III was a statistically representative national probability sample of the civi lian, noninstitutionalized population of the United States in which he ight and weight were measured as part of a more comprehensive health e xamination. The implications of varying population prevalence estimate s based on varying BMI cutoff points are briefly discussed for selecte d examples including World Health Organization overweight/obesity crit eria and the U.S. Dietary Guidelines for Americans, The median BMI for U.S. adults aged 20 years and older is 25.5 kg/m(2), Median stature a nd weight for men are 175.5 cm and 80.0 kg and for women are 161.6 cm and 65.6 kg, respectively, The percentage of the population with BMI < 19.0 is 1.6% for men, 5.7% for women; BMI greater than or equal to 19. 0 to <25.0 is 39.0% for men, 43.6% for women; BMI greater than or equa l to 25.0 is 59.4% for men, 50.7% for women, An estimated 97.1 million adults have a BMI greater than or equal to 25.0. Additional prevalenc e estimates based on other BMI cutoff points and ages are presented.