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How to Chart Your BMI Measurements
Measuring BMI in children is useless, unless you know the percentile for that child's age group. Plotting this takes time and is a big hassle!
There has to be an easier way!
Luckily, there IS an easier way! It only takes 5 seconds to grab your BMI calculator wheel (that you got for free from the Gerber Company), then another 5 seconds to pick up the chart and write the BMI next to the child's vital signs. BUT DON'T STOP THERE! It only takes another 2 seconds to add another number in parentheses after the BMI. This is the 85th percentile level for that child's age.
How did you calculate that in only 2 seconds? Easy! It's the child's age + 10 (see the table below). Once you have recorded the BMI with the 85th percentile for comparison, you have done two things: (1) you have identified the child at risk of obesity, and (2) you have quantified the risk level, since you can easily see how far the BMI is over the 85th percentile. Also, later measurements can show the amount of progress a child has made..
This can also provide a goal for the patient to achieve. How many pounds is a BMI point worth? In the under 200 pound weight range, a rough conversion of BMI points is 1 BMI point = 5 pounds. In the 300 pound range, a BMI point stretches closer to 10 pounds.
Age (Boys and Girls) |
BMI at the 85th percentile |
| under 7 years | 17 |
| 7 years | 17 |
| 8 years | 18 |
| 10 years | 20 |
| 12 years | 22 (girls), 21 (boys) |
| 14 years | 24 (girls), 23 (boys) |
| 15 years to adult | 25 |
Example: 13-year-old boy, weight is 117 lbs, height
is 56 inches. Your BMI wheel reads 26.
You write in the chart: "BMI =
26/23".
You instantly know that he is 15 lbs over the 85th percentile for his age.
Since boys are slightly thinner at the 12-14 age group, he may actually be
closer to 20 lbs over,
but the difference is not worth worrying about.
You will institute a long-range plan for diet and exercise for the whole family
in any case.
