ISLAMABAD: The Body Mass Index (BMI) assesses the relationship between height and weight as a health indicator, whereas the Body Roundness Index (BRI) evaluates abdominal fat in relation to height.
BMI has faced criticism for being an unreliable measure of health, prompting ongoing research into the connection between BRI and health outcomes.Vitamin D Supplements May Improve Blood Pressure, Cholesterol, and Insulin
Recent findings indicate that higher trajectories of body roundness index may elevate the risk of developing cardiovascular diseases, which account for millions of deaths annually, making them a significant public health concern. Physicians typically assess factors like diet and exercise to gauge an individual’s risk for cardiovascular disease and identify actionable steps.
Ongoing research is exploring additional indicators that may correlate with cardiovascular disease risk. A recent study published in the Journal of the American Heart Association investigated the link between BRI trajectories and cardiovascular health. The results revealed that increased BRI trajectories are associated with a heightened likelihood of developing cardiovascular conditions.
BMI vs. BRI
BMI measures a person’s height and weight to identify overweight or obesity, but it does not distinguish between fat and muscle mass, limiting its use as a sole indicator of health risks.
Dr. Cheng-Han Chen, a board-certified interventional cardiologist and medical director of the Structural Heart Program at MemorialCare Saddleback Medical Center in Laguna Hills, CA, who was not involved in the study, pointed out some limitations of BMI to Medical News: “While relatively simple to use, BMI has many flaws that restrict its ability to accurately assess a person’s health status. It fails to account for body fat content and distribution, as well as muscle and bone mass. Moreover, it does not consider racial, ethnic, and sex differences. These limitations make BMI a relatively poor indicator of physical health.”
An alternative measure that may provide more insight is the Body Roundness Index (BRI), which considers waist circumference and height to better reflect fat distribution in the body.
