Body mass index, or BMI, is probably the most effective way to measure whether someone is of a healthy or unhealthy weight. It actually differentiates between the two much better than simply using a person's weight from a scale (though that number is used to gauge body mass index). When you're looking to calculate the BMI of someone with osteoporosis, you would use the same method of calculation as one would for someone without this condition. However, there is some importance of a person's BMI in relation to osteoporosis. By keeping your BMI between 18.5 and 24.9, you are actually reducing your chances of developing this bone disease.
Instructions
1. Measure your height using a tape measure and jot it down on a piece of paper, making sure you convert feet into inches. You may need the assistance of another person to get an accurate measurement.
2. Weigh yourself on a standard scale and jot this number down in pounds on the same piece of paper as before.
3. Multiply your height in inches into itself. If you're 5 feet tall exactly, you would multiply 60 inches by 60 inches, giving you a number of 3,600.
4. Divide your weight (in pounds) by your multiplied height. If a 5-foot person weighed 120 pounds, she would take 120 and divide it by 3,600, getting a new number of 0.033.
5. Multiply this number by 703 to reach your body mass index (BMI). Using this calculation, the five-foot woman would have a BMI of 23.4, meaning she is of a normal weight.
Tags: mass index, piece paper, this number, your height