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People need to ditch the obsession with body mass index and rethink the way they judge obesity, a new report states.
一项最新研究指出，人们应该摆脱对体质指数的迷信，重新审视自己对肥胖的看法。
Researchers from the University of Alberta say the metric, which measures a person's body size from their weight and height, has become a benchmark in modern medicine.
据来自阿尔伯塔大学的研究人员表示，通过测量人的身高和体重来衡量一个人的体型度，已经成为现代医学的一个基准。
But body mass index (BMI) is not only a bad indicator of how healthy you are, it can lead to doctors prescribing the wrong treatment for patients, the scientists say.
但是科学家们表示，体质指数不仅不能说明你健康与否，还可能会导致医生为病人制定错误的治疗方案。
BMI first gained popularity in the 1970s as a way of judging body fat. A healthy BMI is typically measured between 18.5 and 24.9.
作为一种衡量体脂的方法，体质指数第一次被人们接受是在上世纪70年代。健康的体质指数一般在18.5到24.9之间。
Anything under 18.5 is considered underweight. BMIs between 25 and 29.9 fall into overweight territory, and above 30 is considered obese.
体质指数低于18.5则会被认为体重过轻，25到29.9之间则会被认为过重，30以上就是肥胖了。
It is useful for tracking population trends in body weight, but has well-known limitations when applied to individuals, Dr Arya Sharma, an obesity researcher at the University of Alberta in Canada, told Live Science.
加拿大阿尔伯塔大学肥胖研究者艾丽娅·夏尔马博士向Live Science透露，体质指数用来追踪人口体重变化是有用的，但是当适用于个人的时候就有很多众所周知的限制性了。
For example, many professional athletes qualify as overweight or obese based on solely their BMI. But they have much more muscle mass, which weighs proportionally more than fat.
比如说，如果只看体质指数的话，许多职业运动员都是过重或者肥胖。但是他们的肌肉要多得多，占比远超脂肪含量。
And while someone with a BMI of above 30 is considered obese by the metric, they may actually be perfectly healthy, metabolically speaking, according to Dr Sharma.
根据夏尔马博士的说法，尽管某些人体质指数高于30并被认为是肥胖，但是事实上从新陈代谢的角度来讲，他们可能非常健康。
Their blood pressure is normal, their livers are functioning well and their cholesterol levels are within normal limits.
他们的血压正常、肝功能良好、胆固醇水平也在正常范围之内。
On the other hand, some people with BMIs below 30 have health problems if they were to lose weight.
而另一方面，如果某些体质指数低于30的人减肥的话，他们可能会出现一些健康问题。
