What Is a Healthy Weight Range?
Definition
Healthy Weight Range: The range of weights that keeps the body mass index (BMI) between 18.5 and 24.9 for a given height. The World Health Organization treats this BMI range as normal for adults.
A healthy weight range is the weights that keep your body mass index (BMI) between 18.5 and 24.9 for your height. The World Health Organization treats this BMI range as normal for adults. The lower end is 18.5 × height², the upper end 24.9 × height², with height in metres. This is general information, not medical advice.
Where it appears in the formulas
lower end = 18.5 × height (m)² and upper end = 24.9 × height (m)². For a height of 170 cm the range is 18.5 × 1.7² = 53.5 kg to 24.9 × 1.7² = 72 kg. The BMI and ideal weight calculators round the results to 0.1 kg.
| Height | Healthy weight range |
|---|---|
| 160 cm | 47.4–63.7 kg |
| 170 cm | 53.5–72 kg |
| 180 cm | 59.9–80.7 kg |
| 190 cm | 66.8–89.9 kg |
How it differs from ideal weight
The ideal weight formulas give one value from height and sex. The healthy weight range is a range, and it works for any height. BMI does not tell muscle from fat, so the range does not take body build into account either.