Is this really newsworthy?
Last week President Bush underwent his annual physical. It revealed he was in pretty good health, except for one thing. According to his body mass index, he’s overweight.
His BMI was 26, putting him in the lower range of the overweight category. He weighs 196 pounds, meaning he has gained 5 pounds since last year and his percentage of body fat has increased to 16.8 percent, which is, overall, pretty good for a man who just turned 60. (To calculate your BMI, go here).
Still, the appropriate body weight range is 157 to 192 pounds for a 5-foot, 11-inch man. Is there cause for alarm? Should the president go on a diet?
Possibly, dietitians say.
Look, I’m concerned about health issues…but c’mon, our 60 year old president being 4 pounds overweight doesn’t seem like a major crisis to me. If he wants to change his diet and exercise regimen a bit, great–but I don’t think this is exactly a threat to our nation. Obviously, gaining 5 pounds a year isn’t a good thing, but I think at this point, its really a private matter for the president. It isn’t like he’s going to keel over from obesity at any second…but maybe this is just wishful thinking on the part of the media. Who knows?