More than 123 million Americans are overweight, putting them at greater risk for heart attack, stroke, cancer and diabetes.
Body mass index (BMI) is a measure of body fat based on height and weight. The higher the BMI, the greater the risk of some diseases, including high blood pressure, coronary artery disease, stroke, osteoarthritis, some cancers, and type 2 diabetes.
In children and teens, body mass index is used to assess underweight, overweight, and risk for overweight. Children's body fatness changes over the years as they grow. Also, girls and boys differ in their body fatness as they mature. This is why BMI for children, also referred to as BMI-for-age, is gender and age specific. BMI-for-age is plotted on gender specific growth charts. These charts are used for children and teens 2 - 20 years of age.
Each of the CDC BMI-for-age gender specific charts contains a series of curved lines indicating specific percentiles. Healthcare professionals use the following established percentile cutoff points to identify underweight and overweight in children.
| Underweight | BMI-for-age <
5th percentile |
| Normal | BMI-for-age 5th percentile to < 85th percentile |
| At risk of overweight | BMI-for-age
85th percentile to < 95th percentile |
| Overweight | BMI-for-age > 95th percentile |
