As a fat person, you’ve been oppressed by a mathematical equation that was never intended to be and is not in any way an actual measure of health. BMI stands for Body Mass Index, and it’s how we’re sorted into the problematic O-word categories. Other people have already done the work of spelling out how BMI is racist and bullshit, so I’m not going to rehash their work. I’m just going to provide some links.
Note that the linked articles refer to the language of BMI directly and some refer to disordered eating.
Top 10 Reasons Why The BMI Is Bogus, by Keith Devlin at NPR
Debunking the BMI Myth, Be Nourished
BMI is Bulls*it — Here’s Why, by Lisbeth Leftwich, originally on Adios Barbie, reposted on Everyday Feminism
Why BMS Is a Crock, in Pictures, by Kate Harding at Shakesville
Why BMI is a flawed measure of body fat, explained by an eloquent 14-year-old, by Julia Belluz at Vox
Body of Lies: Debunking the BMI, by Ashley-Michelle Papon at Adios Barbie
A new study just totally debunked the BMI scale as a measure of health by Jessica Ellis at Hello Giggles
There’s a Dangerous Racial Bias in the Body Mass Index by Jessica Firger at Newsweek
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