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Waist size may reveal health risks missed by BMI

A Rutgers Health study suggests measuring waist circumference is a simple and effective alternative to complex body fat screening methods.

Updated Aug 31, 2026 · 15:30 UTC1 reports

The short version

  • A new study found that a simple waist measurement, either alone or with body mass index (BMI), is nearly as effective at identifying obesity-related health risks as more complex multi-measurement frameworks.
  • The research highlights that relying solely on BMI fails to identify a significant number of individuals who meet body-fat criteria for obesity.
  • Using waist measurements could offer clinicians and patients a more practical, early warning system to help prevent conditions like diabetes and heart disease.

Key facts

  • Researchers at Rutgers Health analyzed data from 1,900 U.S. adults aged 20 to 59 to evaluate different obesity screening methods.[ScienceDaily]
  • The study, published in JAMA Network Open, found that measuring waist circumference alone or alongside BMI performed nearly as well as a proposed framework requiring multiple measurements including waist-to-hip and waist-to-height ratios.[ScienceDaily]
  • Using BMI alone missed a substantial number of individuals who met the actual body-fat criteria for obesity, as BMI does not account for where fat is stored or differences in overall body composition.[ScienceDaily]
  • According to the study authors, measuring waist circumference is highly feasible for routine clinical visits, unlike measurements like hip circumference which are rarely recorded.[ScienceDaily]

Sources