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Esta página también está en Español: Peso corporal — lo que dice la evidencia
Body weight is the total mass of your body. Tracking it is one way to notice changes in your health — but it can't tell the whole story, because weight includes muscle, bone, fat and water. It's also shaped by everyday factors: your diet, activity, stress, sleep, family history and genes, and age.
What a healthy weight means
A healthy weight is about more than a number: it's feeling good, having energy and lowering your risk of disease. Your provider will judge it from several things:
| Measure | What it shows | Its limits |
|---|---|---|
| Body mass index (BMI) | your weight compared with your height; a higher BMI means higher risk of some diseases | doesn't tell fat from muscle or bone; may overestimate fat in athletes and muscular people and underestimate it in older people or others who've lost muscle |
| Waist size | fat carried mostly around the belly, rather than the hips, raises the risk of heart disease and type 2 diabetes | |
| Health history | risk factors such as high cholesterol |
Weight ranges
| Underweight | lower than is healthy for you |
| Normal | within a healthy range |
| Overweight | higher than is healthy for you |
| Obese | body fat higher than is healthy for you |
A healthy weight can lower your chance of some health problems; too much or too little weight can affect your health. Needs also change with age: children's weight and growth are tracked against their age, and for older adults, keeping muscle and strength matters most.
Sudden changes
Talk to your provider if you're gaining or losing weight without trying — it can signal a medical problem. Older adults should always have sudden weight loss checked.
| Sudden weight loss can come from | Sudden weight gain can come from |
|---|---|
| thyroid problems | certain medicines |
| cancer | thyroid problems |
| infectious diseases | heart failure |
| digestive diseases | kidney disease |
| certain medicines | liver disease |
Keeping a healthy weight
A healthy weight can improve your energy, sleep and overall wellbeing. Ask your provider what's healthy for you; they may refer you to a dietitian, who's trained to help you learn how best to eat.
- To lose weight: good nutrition and exercise help — and even a small loss can lower your risk of some diseases.
- To gain weight: add extra calories within a well-balanced diet, and treat any underlying medical problem.
Focus on your health, not just the scale: daily healthy habits and self-compassion support lasting improvement.
Sources
Based on "Body Weight," MedlinePlus, U.S. National Library of Medicine, with a summary from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NIH); a work of the United States government in the public domain.
Licencia: CC0 1.0 (dominio público) · Adaptado de medlineplus.gov
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