What is Morbid Obesity?
Obesity is unhealthy excess weight. It is the most common medical problem in our community. Morbid obesity is when your weight threatens either your health or life. It is a disease in which the accumulation of excess fatty tissue interferes with other body organs causing serious, life-threatening health problems called co-morbidities.

What is the degree of my obesity?
The severity of obesity is determined by a measurement called the body mass index (BMI). BMI is a useful measure of overweight and obesity. It is calculated from your height and weight. BMI is calculated by dividing your weight in kilograms by your height squared in meters.

Generally speaking a BMI between 18.5 and 25 is considered healthy weight, but be aware that BMI does not take into consideration body frame size or muscle mass. BMI is an estimate of body fat and a good measure of your risk for diseases that can occur with more body fat. The higher BMI, the higher your risk for certain diseases such as heart disease, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, gallstones, breathing problems, and certain cancers.

Although BMI can be used for most men and women, it does have some limits:

• It may overestimate body fat in athletes and others who have a muscular build.
• It may underestimate body fat in older persons and others who have lost muscle.

	BMI (kg/m²)
Underweight	<18.5
Healthy Weight	18.5 – 25
Overweight	25 – 30
Obese (class I)	30 – 35
Severely Obese (class II)	35 – 40
Morbidly Obese (class III)	40 – 50
Super Obese	>50