Comments on: BMI in the Elderly: What You Need to Know

By: Victoria

Victoria — Sun, 19 Jan 2025 17:26:49 +0000

Remember as one ages– their natural taste buds may change– and the person may find sweetly flavored foods more palatable.

By: Katie Dodd

Katie Dodd — Wed, 04 Jan 2023 23:45:44 +0000

In reply to KasaR. Assessing height can be tricky for those who are unable to stand up straight or have spinal deformations. In those situations, we typically use alternative methods for obtaining height like arm span (where someone spreads their arms wide and we measure from fingertip to fingertip) and document it as "estimated height". I think the big take-home message is that BMI is just one guideline. We're most concerned with maintaining muscle mass and preventing unintended weight loss (which causes muscle loss). Hope this is helpful!

By: KasaR

KasaR — Wed, 14 Dec 2022 19:03:58 +0000

This article is very informative and well sourced. I do have one question. In my readings I’ve seen that doctors now say older adults should use their height before they began ‘shrinking’ for BMI calculations. Should that be applied to these guidelines when calculating BMI?

TIA!

By: Katie Dodd

Katie Dodd — Tue, 01 Nov 2022 20:22:32 +0000

In reply to Kathleen Core. I'm so glad this was helpful! Thank you for the work that you do.

By: Kathleen Core

Kathleen Core — Tue, 01 Nov 2022 15:50:07 +0000

Hospice NP here. Somewhere along the line, I missed the memo about applicability of BMI with the elderly population. Great information with good references. I will be introducing to our team!

By: Nancy Miller

Nancy Miller — Tue, 26 Jul 2022 21:31:46 +0000

My mother, age 96, is trying to lose weight. She is 5’6″ and 180 pounds, so her BMI is already slightly under 30. Her plan for losing this weight is forgoing sugary sweet desserts at dinner every night and having a fresh fruit cup. I think if she looses 5-8 pounds that will be a good thing for her mobility and her morale. She walks quite a bit and attends a seated exercise class three times a week, so her muscles do get used. Although her appetite is still very good, she is obsessed with sweets, which are “empty calories.” With fewer sweets, she can apply her appetite to higher protein foods and foods with more nutrients. I think this is an example of a very old person who wants to lose some weight for good reasons. Thank you for your article, which is extremely helpful.

By: Katie Dodd

Katie Dodd — Tue, 12 Apr 2022 22:03:08 +0000

In reply to Kristina. Thank you! :)

By: Kristina

Kristina — Mon, 04 Apr 2022 18:58:10 +0000

AMAZING ARTICLE! Something I have struggled with, especially being a younger RDN, is bringing the recent research and information into practice in my facilities. I was able to show this article to many members of the interdisciplinary team (many of them are older, so their practices are becoming outdated), and it changed so many of their outlooks on this. It was incredibly helpful that you also referenced the research behind everything. Definitely worth the read for all health professions.

By: Katie Dodd

Katie Dodd — Tue, 12 Oct 2021 15:15:34 +0000

In reply to Murray V Duffin. Thanks for sharing! It is wonderful that you are able to remain so active. Lean muscle mass and physical activity are way more important than BMI.

By: Murray V Duffin

Murray V Duffin — Sat, 09 Oct 2021 19:26:44 +0000

This is a super body of advice. Between ages 67 and 77 I gained 12% (17 lbs) while maintaining my activity level including resistance training. My doctor then put me on a low fat/low calorie diet and I lost 18 lbs over a year of unpleasant dieting. I then found out the low fat was not a good idea, tapered off the diet, and regained 12 lbs before I got stabilized. I have since tried everything to lose a few of those pounds, to no avail. My BMI is 25.2 and my lean muscle mass is excellent, and I do resistance and aerobic training on a regular schedule. I am so thankful to learn that I can forget about trying to lose that weight. I guess the failure to lose weight over the last 8 years has been good for me. Thanks you , thank you.