Body Mass Index Statistics

Average BMI varies from country to country and is dependant on a number of factors, mainly surrounding lifestyle. What people eat, how often they exercise, the quality of their food products etc will all affect their body mass index.

According to the graph below, which has been edited to show the lowest and highest BMI by country, Japan has the lowest BMI whilst the USA the highest.

This is mainly due to diet and exercise; Japanese people eat very healthily and their consumption of fresh fish is high. American, on the other hand, is the home of fast food outlets such as McDonald's, Kentucky Fried Chicken and Burger King...each renound for their high fat content meals.

The global epidemic of overweight and obesity - "globesity" - is rapidly becoming a major public health problem in many parts of the world. The increasing prevalence of overweight and obesity is associated with many diet-related chronic diseases including diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular disease, stroke, hypertension and certain cancers.

The World Health Organization (WHO) designates obesity as one of the most important public health threats because of the significant impact of chronic conditions associated with obesity.

Obesity in adults increases the risk of cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, and musculoskeletal disorders.