Ditch checking BMI in favour of looking at tummy fat, researchers say

A new study suggests looking at how fat somebody is round their waist in relation to their height is a good predictor of early death (Daniel Leal-Olivas/PA)

Scrutinising a person’s body mass index (BMI) should be ditched in favour of examining how fat they are round the middle, new research suggests.

Data presented at the European Association for the Study of Diabetes in Stockholm found that waist-to-hip ratio is a much better predictor of early death than looking at BMI.