If BMI is so outdated what should be used instead?

[AutisticLegoLover]

Inspired by another thread where some posters are slating BMI as outdated.
BMI is a blunt tool, I agree, but what should be used instead? The old height weight charts were devised by American insurance companies or so I read in an eating disorders book. BMI was devised by analysing white European men. It's not possible to have everyone measured by callipers so what should be used? I personally think BMI is very generous and has a large range of healthy weight for height. 18.5-24.9 has a range of something like 3.5 stone for me but as a guide it's useful and ideally should be used alongside blood pressure and cholesterol and waist measurement. Not everyone can access BP and cholesterol checks easily though.
I am a retired GP Practice nurse and we used BMI but also had a height and weight chart on the wall. The height and weight charts are less generous. Still, it's just a blunt tool, a guide, an easy starting point.

What should be used instead to be more accurate for the whole adult population?

That's because where you need to be in the range isn't necessarily at its maxima. For some people though, it will be.

If the population as a whole is in range though (even though some might be better off being lower within it) then we will be reducing the burdens of ill health significantly.

Definitely true that the maxima is not where I need to be! But yes, the pont about the population as a whole is a good one.

I wonder if it is going to be possible to reverse trends, or whether now we are an overweight population, we will stay that way.

I think the reality is that BMI is a very blunt tool that’s overly generous to some and overly harsh to others as it gives a wide range and everyone will fall at a different ‘point’ within the range.

BMI gives me a healthy weight range from 51-69 kgs. I have had proper body fat testing a few times for sports (as a young adult and again more recently) and that gives me a healthy weight range of 63-72 kilos based on being 18-28 percent body fat which is the healthy range. This is pretty accurate as I hit 60 as a young athlete and periods stopped and I was very unwell - I could never be 51.

So could argue for my build BMI is inaccurate as at 69-72 my BMI becomes overweight but I’d still be in the healthy body fat range.

I think if GPS could accurately body fat test that would be much more helpful, as also accounts for changes when muscle is gained and fat is lost etc