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Your BMI
A BMI calculator is an online or offline device that measures your body mass index. The body mass index or BMI is a measure of how much body mass you have in relation to your height and weight.
Body mass refers not only to the fat within your body but also within muscles and bones. It is calculated by taking your weight and dividing it by the square of your height. The BMI figures let you know whether you are within the normal weight range or if you are underweight or overweight.
Both high BMIs and low ones are known to raise a host of health problems, especially as you age. However, a high BMI in itself is not always, medically speaking, a cause for alarm. It should be viewed in conjunction with other health parameters.
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Table of Content
How to Calculate BMI Using BMI Formula?
Calculating your BMI is a simple process that you can carry out manually or with the help of a BMI calculator online. A BMI calculator can make this process much more convenient, and you can easily locate the calculator on the Tata AIA official website. When calculating your BMI using the calculator, here is what you should do:
A value between 18.5 and 25 kg/m is considered a normal BMI, while a value below 15 is severely underweight. If your BMI falls between 15 and 18, you will still be underweight; while reading in the range of 25 to 30, you will be classified as overweight.
If your BMI is between 30 and 40 and above 40, you come under the obese and severely obese categories, respectively.
The calculation of the BMI takes place by dividing your weight in kilograms by your height in metres squared. Here is an example of the same:
BMI = Weight (in kilograms) / Height (in metre2)
For instance, if you weigh 70 kg and your height is 1.5 m, your BMI would be calculated like so:
70/ (1.5 x 1.5) = 31.11
Benefits of Body Mass Index Calculator
With the help of the BMI calculator online, you can know if you have a healthy body weight as per your height. Knowing your BMI can help you prepare for several potential health risks in case you are overweight, obese, or underweight. Since the BMI calculator for men and women is the same, you should also consider other factors that could be the reason for your BMI reading. In the case of children, the BMI calculator takes age and gender into account.
Below are some reasons why you should use an online body mass index calculator:
While you should absolutely enjoy a sumptuous meal from time to time, ensure that your daily meals are not unnaturally rich in calories. Eat a balanced diet with all food groups and only an essential amount of fat, and consume the calories that you can burn with workouts, physical activity, and so on. This helps ensure that your weight is normal and that you stay in the healthy BMI range.
A stressful schedule can take your attention away from how much you eat in a day. However, you can make a conscious effort to only eat the amount of food your body needs to stay healthy and function normally. This also helps avoid wastage of food. After all, overeating not only causes physical discomfort but also leads to obesity over a period of time, which causes many health issues.
The craving for sugary and oily snacks never ends! But that does not mean that such foods are good for your body. While sugar and oil are part of the food pyramid, they should be consumed in very small quantities. To satiate your cravings for sugary sweets, you can opt for natural fruit juices or fruit salads which will not help you avoid excessive consumption of sugar but also keep you well-hydrated.
All health professionals keep reiterating the importance of exercise. Daily activity and any exercise such as walking, jogging, and cycling alone may not always help you achieve your desired physique, but it surely helps improve your mobility and helps you maintain a healthy body weight which translates to a healthy Body Mass Index. Try and get at least 30-45 minutes of exercise each day!
In the case of adults, the BMI is calculated using the BMI reference chart, which is the same for men and women. As per the BMI chart, a reading below 18.5 is underweight, while a reading between 18.5 and 29.5 is healthy. However, a body mass index between 25 and 29.9 indicates that one is overweight, and a body mass index beyond 30 is said to indicate obesity.
Obesity can be categorised into three sections:
BMI Chart
Category | BMI limit kilograms/m2 |
Underweight | Below 18.5 |
Normal Weight | 18.5 to 24.9 |
Overweight | 25 to 29.9 |
Obese | Above 30 |
Body Mass Index (BMI) is the ratio of your body fat or mass that is directly related to your height and weight. To arrive at this ratio, one can use the imperial BMI formula or the standard metric. In India, Body mass index calculators in India follow the metric system. To understand what a healthy or ideal BMI for men is, there is a standard measure that applies to all men irrespective of body type, age, race, muscle mass and other aspects.
The BMI formula, being quite standard, does not consider minor differences in different bodies. The aim of the BMI is to understand if you have a healthy or unhealthy weight and what is the risk of you suffering from weight-related conditions such as arthritis, blood pressure, diabetes, etc.
From the evolutionary perspective and depending on one’s lifestyle, most men tend to develop muscle mass or fat. However, the BMI calculator cannot differentiate between muscle and fat and therefore, a man with greater muscle mass can have a high BMI akin to a man with high body fat since their body weight and height will be the same. An increase in muscle mass can be interpreted as overweight if the conventional BMI formula is used.
Essentially, the body mass index calculator is a standardised approach and a generalised measure of your health and your weight.
The calculation, BMI formula, the normal BMI range as well as the Body Mass Index online calculator, and the reference chart for men and women are the same. You may refer to the following chart below:
However, the conventional BMI formula doesn’t measure the various differences in women’s bodies when compared to other women and men. Women’s bodies are much more diverse when it comes to body shape, fat content and other parameters, hence, the parameters for understanding a healthy weight for women are different than that for men. For example, women tend to have more abdominal fat or visceral fat due to childbirth, menopause, and also their age.
However, if a woman gains excess fat specifically around her midsection despite having a healthy BMI, there is a risk of her suffering from weight-related diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, and others.
Women with greater muscle mass may be determined as overweight since the Body Mass Index online calculator for women cannot tell the difference between body fat and muscle mass. However, like in the case of men, the BMI formula defines a standard and normal BMI for women, which can be looked at as a reliable indicator of healthy body weight.
The BMI for children differs from the one used for women and men. Since children grow quite fast, their height and weight fluctuate very often. Hence, BMI for children is calculated using their age and the corresponding body percentile. Doctors and paediatricians use the BMI chart to which the body percentile correlates.
In India, the Indian Academy of Paediatrics has the most accurate BMI chart for children. Here is the standardised BMI chart that indicates the BMI ranges for both girls and boys between the age of 6 to 18 years:
Based on your BMI reading, if you are categorised as overweight or obese, then you may have to face certain health problems down the line. These health risks are often directly linked to being overweight:
Though mental health concerns are not directly related to being overweight, there are other factors such as a feeling of lethargy, an unhealthy relationship with food, being overly conscious about one’s body image and more that can lead to anxiety and other mental health issues.
There are also a number of problems associated with having a low body weight. Here are some of the health problems linked to being underweight:
Not many people may be aware but underweight persons are also given a fitness regime along with a healthy diet plan by their doctors/nutritionists. Exercising not only serves its purpose for weight loss but can also help you gain weight in a healthy and structured manner.
Your BMI value not only affects your health and health insurance policy but is also important when you are planning to buy a term insurance policy. When you purchase a term plan, your insurance provider may not require a health certificate; however, if you are suffering from health issues related to your weight, it is important that your insurance provider be aware of the same.
For this purpose, you may be asked to produce a medical certificate, and your weight will serve as an important consideration while calculating your term insurance premium, among many other factors.
In case you are severely overweight or underweight, you may have a chance of suffering from health conditions later in life or even a few years down the line. This is why your insurance provider will increase your premium amount depending on whether you have a healthy BMI or not.
Tata AIA Life Insurance also offers the following calculators which you can use on our official website:
What is the ideal BMI for life insurance?
The same BMI chart is used for men and women. Therefore, the readings for a normal or healthy weight range will be the same for men and women, considering a host of other factors. However, a normal BMI not only indicates that you have a healthy body weight but will also affect the cost of your life insurance premiums.
With a normal BMI, you are likely to pay a lower premium as compared to someone with a BMI that indicates that they are overweight or underweight. People who have a BMI higher or lower than the normal BMI are prone to health conditions such as heart diseases, high or low blood pressure, diabetes, etc.
To ensure your premiums are low, try your best to maintain a BMI within the normal or healthy BMI range.
Do insurance providers rely on BMI readings to gauge your health condition?
In general, your insurance provider will not ask you to furnish your medical certificate unless you have any underlying health issues. If you are suffering from certain health conditions due to obesity or due to being severely underweight, your BMI and your medical certificate will be taken into consideration.
How does BMI affect life insurance?
The normal BMI range is from 18 to 24.9 is a normal BMI. Anything below that is underweight and above is overweight or obese. As the BMI is a practical and direct indicator of your health in relation to your weight, the cost of your life insurance policy can be considered keeping your BMI in mind and hence, a Body Mass Index online calculator is used in life insurance.
Hence, if you have a BMI in the normal range, you could be looking at paying premiums that are lower than those with a very high or low BMI reading. This is because overweight, obese or underweight people may need medical consultation and assistance due to potential health issues which increases the risk of their life. Therefore, their life insurance premiums can be high too.
As per one’s height and age, how much should one weigh?
There is no hard-and-fast rule on how much you should weigh as per your height and age. However, for the sake of standardisation, the BMI calculator assesses a normal or unhealthy weight by correlating your height and weight. Your genes, age, medical history, the fat content in your body, the muscle mass in your body, etc., can affect your BMI reading.
For adults, the BMI chart starts at 5 feet and 45 kilograms and goes up to 6.4 feet and around 98 kilograms. However, there is no way to calculate your BMI by your age.
It is important to know that in adults, excess visceral fat or excess fat in the midsection can be one of the main reasons for many health issues. Hence, even a slim person with a very normal BMI falls prey to these conditions if they have excess fat in their midsection. As per the BMI chart, your height and weight should indicate a normal BMI range of 18 to 24. However, in case you do have any health concerns that you are aware of, you should act on it and consult your general physician even though your BMI may be normal.
How accurate are BMI readings?
Though BMI values arrived at from the correlation between your height and weight are sufficiently reliable, the readings are standard and do not consider a number of factors such as the age of the adult, the body fat, muscle mass and the body frame. Hence, even a slim person with greater bone mass density can appear to be overweight according to their BMI value. But in cases where people need to know if they come under a healthy weight range, the BMI calculator and its readings are reliable enough.
How to maintain a healthy BMI?
To maintain a healthy BMI, you will need to maintain healthy body weight. There are no standards on what the ideal height and body weight is but you can set some guidelines for yourself. Irrespective of your height, if your weight is causing minor issues such as breathlessness during physical activities, pain in the joints, or general discomfort while sitting down and getting up, it could be a clear indicator that your weight is on the higher side. Similarly, a very low weight that causes problems with your appetite and nutritional needs may require you to work on gaining some weight. Of course, all of this should only be done under the guidance of a general physician or a certified nutritionist.
The main aim of measuring your BMI is to know whether your weight poses an increased risk for weight-related ailments. That is why it becomes essential to maintain a healthy BMI. You can achieve this by eating balanced and healthy meals, sleeping well, and getting at least 30-40 minutes of exercise daily.
Will my BMI increase or decrease with age?
Your BMI can most certainly increase or decrease with your age. Unless you are quite mindful of your daily schedule and your health, it is likely that there will be some fluctuations in your body weight from time to time. If the changes are minor, there won’t be much difference in your BMI readings since its accuracy falls within a range.
However, if you undergo excessive weight loss or weight gain with age, the reason for this could be your genetic history, your lifestyle habits, and many other factors. As far as possible, aim to maintain a healthy weight influenced by healthy habits or visit your general physician if you feel that your weight can be a reason for potential health problems.
Can you have a normal BMI with a proper diet and exercise?
In many cases, people have weight-related problems due to poor lifestyle choices. If you can manage to get enough exercise and sleep and follow a healthy diet plan, it is possible to maintain a healthy weight which means a healthy BMI. However, if your weight-related issues are due to a genetic condition, then it is best to consult your doctor since a simple diet and exercise regime may fall short of your expectations.
Can BMI tell the difference between body fat and muscle mass?
No, the BMI reading will only consider your total weight in relation to your height. Hence, two people who have the same weight and height will have a similar BMI reading, even though one person’s body fat content will be greater while the other person’s muscle mass will be greater.
Does gender affect the BMI?
Yes, your gender will affect your BMI reading. However, the BMI chart for men and women is the same. So, while the standards for being in the healthy weight range or the deviated weight range are the same for men and women, they can have different BMI readings, depending on their age, body fat content, muscle mass and height.
Disclaimer
Tata AIA Life Insurance InstaProtect comprises Tata AIA Life Insurance Sampoorna Raksha Supreme (Non-Linked, Non-Participating, Individual Life Insurance Plan) (UIN: 110N160V03) - Life Option (in case Return of Premium is No) or Life Plus Option (in case of Return of Premium is Yes), Tata AIA Vitality Protect (UIN: 110B046V01) - A Non-linked, Non-participating, Individual Health Rider; Tata AIA Vitality Health (UIN: 110B045V01) - A Non-linked, Non-participating, Individual Health Rider.
$At the time of purchase, if the policyholder chooses to opt for a Return of Balance Premium option - For Sampoorna Raksha Supreme (Life Plus Option), an amount equal to the 105% of the Total Premiums Paid towards the product (excluding loading for modal premiums) shall be payable at the end of the Policy Term, provided the life assured survives till maturity and the policy is not terminated earlier. For Tata AIA Vitality Protect and Tata AIA Vitality Health, an amount equal to the Total Premiums Paid towards the respective benefit option (excluding loading for modal premiums), less any claim amount already paid out under the respective benefit option, shall be payable at the end of the benefit option term, provided the benefit option is not terminated.
Please make your own independent decision after consulting your financial or other professional advisor.
Insurance cover is available under the product.
The products are underwritten by Tata AIA Life Insurance Company Ltd.
The plans are not a guaranteed issuance plan and it will be subject to Company’s underwriting and acceptance.
For more details on risk factors, terms and conditions please read sales brochure carefully before concluding a sale.
L&C/Advt/2022/Oct/2593