Palms of My Hands

Figuring out if a teen overweight can be more complicated than it is for adults. That’s because teens are still growing developing.

Doctors and other health care professionals often use a measurement called body mass index (BMI) to determine if someone is overweight.

Doctors consider a teen obese when his or her BMI numbers is higher than the BMI numbers of 95% of other teens the same age and gender. Someone whose BMI number is between 85% and 95% of the BMIs of other teens the same age and gender is OVERWEIGHT.