I’m a healthy size 12... but doctor put me on weight loss pills because of my BMI
A SOCIAL media influencer has hit out at the controversial BMI scale after a doctor used it to prescribe her weight loss pills – when she was a healthy size 12.
Regan Ellis, 22, was told she was overweight and needed to lose 2. stone within six months after going to hospital for regular blood test results.
She was prescribed Orlistat, a weight loss drug, and shed 10lbs in four months. But, despite dropping to a size ten, she was told her weight was still too high.
Miss Ellis, who was ft 7ins and 11st 12lb at her first appointment, is now calling on doctors to ‘re-evaluate’ the scale.
She told the Daily Mail: ‘If I needed to lose weight for medical reasons I would do it – but looking back on what happened makes me realise how dangerous BMI can be.
‘[The BMI scale] needs reevaluating. Young girls and rugby players have been told they’re overweight.’
BMI is calculated by dividing weight in kilograms by height in metres squared.
A BMI of less than 18. is classed as underweight and 18. -24.9 is healthy. Meanwhile 2 -29.9 equates to being overweight and above 30 is obese.
But its reliability as a measure has been questioned over the years as it does not distinguish muscle from fat, meaning well-built athletes like rugby players can be classed as ‘obese’ while slim people with ‘normal’ BMIs may be carrying unhealthy amounts of fat without realising.
Miss Ellis, who also owns beauty salon Signature Studio Aesthetics, is a regular outpatient at Milton Keynes University Hospital in Buckinghamshire because she suffers from endometriosis and polycystic ovary syndrome.
After being prescribed Orlistat – which left her with an ‘upset stomach’ – she said she felt ‘deflated’ and upset. She added: ‘The average size in the UK is a 16. I [took] it with a pinch of salt but it definitely had an impact on me.’ The hospital was contacted for comment.
Miss Ellis, who has 110,000 followers on TikTok, said she is going to the Caribbean for a work trip over Christmas, and will continue posting swimwear photos.
She added: ‘I’d be a poor role model if I shied away and didn’t do [modelling] any more. I think as long as you’re happy and confident in your own skin, it shouldn’t matter what size jeans you wear. So I’ll make a point of doing it on holiday.’
‘The scale needs re-evaluating’