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Please note!
This fact brief was originally published as an experiment to test the concepts behind fact briefs.
Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of useful information in fact briefs like this one, not all of them reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.
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FACT BRIEF

Does the standard BMI calculation overestimate obesity in Black people?

By Lisa Freedland
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YES

The body mass index—an estimate of body fat derived from a person‘s weight and height—overestimates obesity in Black people.

According to findings by the Endocrine Society, there is a greater disparity between BMI estimates and direct measures of body fat in Blacks than in whites. BMI does not differentiate between weight from fat and weight from muscle, making taller and more muscular individuals more susceptible to misclassifications. Researchers conclude that “muscle mass may be higher in Blacks, which would explain the dissociation.”

The BMI calculation was developed in the 1830s by Adolphe Quetelet, a Belgian academic who sought to identify the “ideal” traits of “the average man.” In devising the scale, Quetelet used only Western European participants, suggesting a body-type bias.

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute: Calculate your BMI
ScienceDaily: Body fat measurements overestimate fatness in African-Americans
Medical News Today Medical News Today: Why BMI is inaccurate and misleading
Eugenics Archive: Adolphe Quetelet
ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTOR
Gigafact
Between 2020 and 2022, under close editorial supervision, Gigafact contracted a group of freelance writers and editors to test the concepts for fact briefs and provide inputs to our software development process. We call this effort Gigafact Foundry. Over the course of these two years, Gigafact Foundry writers published over 1500 fact briefs in response to claims they found online. Their important work forms the basis of Gigafact formats and editorial guidelines, and is available to the public on Gigafact.org. Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of relevant information to be found, not all fact briefs produced by Gigafact Foundry reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date and need to be looked at with fresh eyes, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.
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About fact briefs published on Gigafact
Fact briefs are short, credibly sourced summaries that offer “yes/no” answers in response to claims found online. They rely on publicly available, often primary source data and documents. Fact briefs are created by contributors to Gigafact —a nonprofit project looking to expand participation in fact-checking and protect the democratic process. See all fact briefs here.