New recommendations on how to define obesity would reduce the emphasis on body mass index and also take into account health problems from extra weight and other measurements

Habits like getting adequate exercise, nutrition, and sleep can have profoundly positive effects on overall health whether they affect weight or not, Erlanger says. A recent research review, for example, found that cardiorespiratory fitness is a better predictor of longevity than weight.

An international and widely supported group of experts is pushing doctors to avoid the exclusive use of BMI to decide whether someone has obesity, alongside other major changes.