A pseudo-study [click the header to read the story at ESPN.com] conducted by University of North Carolina endocrinologist Joyce Harp and student Lindsay Hecht used player statistics on the NFL Web site to calculate BMIs for 2,168 NFL players, most of the active players in the 2003-04 season. The results showed that 56 percent of the players had a BMI of 30 or more, which would make them obese according to the standard assessment of BMI scores.
However, BMI does not take into account the body composition of the person being measured -- only the ratio of height to weight. For example, a 6' 2" player who weighs 235 pounds has a BMI of slightly over 30. Yet he might only have 10 percent body fat, which would make him very healthy. The BMI might be an adequate tool for the general population, but it isn't a reliable measure of health for athletes or anyone who trains with weights.
There are undoubtedly some players in the NFL who are overweight, especially linemen. They are a small group of players on any team. Look at the "skill" players -- quarterbacks, running backs, receivers, defensive backs, linebackers, and even tight ends -- and you're not likely to find a player with more than 12 percent body fat.
This study is not an indictment of the NFL and its players. It is, however, an indictment of how useless the BMI scale is for athletes who carry a large amount of muscle.
On a personal note, I am 6' tall and weigh in at about 210. My body fat is around 10-12 percent right now, but my BMI is 28.5, which makes me overweight (25-29) and nearly obese (30 or higher). If insurance companies were to use BMI numbers to determine health risks on policies, my rates would be unfairly high considering my overall health and body composition.
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