How do you know if you are healthy? Do you measure blood pressure? Cholesterol? Blood sugar? BMI?
There is actually something called the Body Roundness Index, or “BRI.” This is not to be confused with BMI, which measures your body fat based on height/weight to show if you’re in a normal weight range. In contrast, your Body Roundness Index looks at your height and waist circumference. We have known for a long time that “intra-abdominal” visceral fat — internal fat in your abdomen — is associated with metabolic syndrome and a higher health risk of heart disease and diabetes. We know that where you gain fat changes as you age. Older men and post-menopausal women tend to gain more width at their waistline. BRI ranges from 1 to 20, with 20 being more round. A “potbelly” or “beer belly” is a sign of poorer health.
This was a study published in JAMA (The Journal of American Medicine), June 2024 entitled, “Body Roundness Index and All Cause Mortality Among US Adults.”
Study:
- 33,000 patients
- Mean BRI increased from 4.8 to 5.62 since 1999 (found mostly in women, the elderly, and Mexican Americans)
- BRI and all cause mortality follows a U shape — the LOWEST BRI and HIGHEST BRI experience a significantly increased risk of all cause mortality
- They looked at deaths in a follow-up period for 10 years, and 10% of participants died
- BRI less than 3.4 and BRI 6.9 or greater
They postulate that BRI is a better indicator of health than BMI and other commonly used factors.
How Can Biohackr Health Help?
This study makes sense to us. We know visceral fat is bad. We love our InBody scan, as it looks at your weight but breaks it down into muscle versus fat. It can measure where fat is on your body, so it can estimate your visceral fat.
- What is your BRI? Take the test here.
- InBody Scan
- Address your weight and overall health. Whether you are underweight or overweight, we have treatments which are aimed at improving your overall health, including:
- Hormone
- NAD+
- Semaglutide & Tirzepatide
- Probiotics to aid with digestion and insulin resistance
Come in for an evaluation. Optimize you. What you do at younger ages sets you up for how you will be in your 70s and 80s.
