Instead of using the controversial body mass index, or BMI, to assess weight, an international group of scientists proposes an approach that looks at how excess body fat affects health

As obesity experts say more than 15 million Birtons are being wrongly labelled overweight and propose a radical overhaul of the traditional BMI measure currently being used, Leah Hardy unpicks the sci

An international committee of scientists has proposed changing the way obesity is defined and diagnosed. The proposal adds more ways to measure body composition and fat.

BMI is used to classify individuals as underweight, healthy weight, overweight, or obese based on their height and weight. It is calculated by dividing weight in kilograms by health in meters squared.

But the risk to health and wellbeing is not determined by weight – and therefore BMI – alone. We've been part of a global collaboration that has spent the past two years discussing how this should change.