What is the Role of Body Mass Index (BMI) in Pediatrics?
Body Mass Index (BMI) is a crucial indicator used to assess whether a child has a healthy body weight for their height. BMI is calculated by dividing a child's weight in kilograms by the square of their height in meters. For children and teens, BMI percentiles are used to interpret the results. A BMI between the 5th and 85th percentile is considered healthy, below the 5th percentile is underweight, and above the 85th percentile is overweight or obese.