High BMI and COVID-19 (body mass index, overweight, scan, pounds)

[ersatz]

The CDC advised that a Body Mass Index of 40 or higher is a high risk factor for COVID-19 victims. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019...onditions.html

New evidence seems to indicate that overweight persons are high risk as well. https://www.zmescience.com/science/o...ymptoms-93523/

We can’t do anything about our age but this is further incentive (if anyone needs more) to keep working on losing weight.

[Hedgehog_Mom]

It's kind of too late to start losing weight for the pandemic, as bad as that sounds.

I was reading that ACE inhibitors like Lisinopril make people more susceptible to the virus. Possibly that's why obesity is a high risk factor, because almost all obese people are encouraged to take lisinopril.

[NYC2RDU]

Morbidly obese people are high risk health-wise anyway, with or without COVID-19.

But there was a grossly inaccurate rumor circulating two weeks ago that if you needed critical care in a hospital and had a BMI of over 25, you would be denied the appropriate care. I remember thinking that meant most of us are screwed. I mean, I'm in pretty good shape and definitely not overweight, but still have a BMI of around 28.

[Malloric]

BMI of 40 is very, very overweight. It's sort of a joke scale as someone who is athletic. I fluctuate between a 26.5-28 nowadays and was down around 23 when I was racing bikes. I wasn't pro cyclists scrawny (still lifted weights) but you could count ribs. DEXA scan at 165 came in at 14% body fat, which was about 5-10 pounds over what I raced at, so around ~8-12% body fat. I'd peak for a few road races down at 155 but I couldn't maintain that weight. On the other hand it's a big scale. When I was fatty mcfat at 230 that's still only a 34. For 5'9" a BMI over 40 is over 270, which is super mcfatty. You might be able to get through your 40s and be relatively healthy at that weight but very few 50 year olds are going to be healthy if they are that overweight.