Posting in anticipation of the usual floods of people claiming that because the BMI scale is inaccurate for the very young, very old, pregnant women and bodybuilders, they can stop worrying about their 40+ BMI and use more "accurate" forms of health management, like self-diagnosis and "intuitive eating".
As the article points out, BMI is primarily a tool for use at a population-wide level, and in that regard it has been, and continues to be, a useful way of tracking trends in obesity. On an individual level? It should be the first step of a diagnosis, one of many potential red flags that are then looked into more closely. Only an idiot (and, apparently, the US Navy) would use it as the final word in assessing health.
As the article points out, BMI is primarily a tool for use at a population-wide level, and in that regard it has been, and continues to be, a useful way of tracking trends in obesity. On an individual level? It should be the first step of a diagnosis, one of many potential red flags that are then looked into more closely. Only an idiot (and, apparently, the US Navy) would use it as the final word in assessing health.
