Being overweight increases health risks. Obesity reduces life expectancy by an average of nine years and in the UK is responsible for 9,000 premature deaths each year. Being overweight can impact on the quality of every day life making moving about more difficult and carrying out daily tasks. There are many reasons why people may be overweight, but the main reason is that overweight people are taking in more energy than they are expending.

Managing weight for life is not about dieting, our diet is what we eat every day, most people associate a diet with something they are either on or off. We gain weight because we consume more energy than we expend. A very small change to what we eat can sometimes be the difference between slowly putting on weight, staying at the same weight or gradually losing weight.

One way of checking if you are classed as overweight is by finding our your body mass index, this identifies bandings for weight. Use the BMI calculator now to find out whether your weight is putting your health at risk.

Apart from weight, body shape and waist size is a useful guide to the impact of excess weight on your health. People with an apple shape have a greater risk of heart disease than pear shaped people. The simplest way of deciding whether you are carrying too much fat centrally is to measure your waist. To see why waist size is important and how to measure your waist CLICK HERE

Being Underweight

This could also be damaging for your health. Weighing too little can contribute to a weakened immune system, fragile bones and a lack of energy. If your body mass index (BMI) is below the healthy range, this is an indication that your weight may be too low. If you're underweight, your could speak to your GP or practice nurse who can provide more information, help and advice.