The Women and Equalities Committee has called on Public Health England to use a ‘Health at Every Size’ (HAES) approach over use of Body Mass Index to determine a person’s healthy weight.
The committee’s inquiry into body image criticised the use of BMI which is derived from the mass (weight) and height of a person.
In its stead, the report recommends a measure used by Anybody UK, an organisation dedicated to giving voice to groups and individuals committed to challenging body hatred.
The committee says the HAES approach is a more effective means to prevent weight-based discrimination and an overreliance on BMI. The approach involves treating patients while honouring differences in size, age, race, ethnicity, gender, dis/ability, sexual orientation, religion, class, and other human attributes.
Consequently, the report recommends that government urgently commissions research into the extent and impact of weight based discrimination for people accessing NHS services and that PHE should stop using BMI as a measure of individual health and adopt a HAES approach within 12 months.
