Human body weight is a person's mass or weight.
Strictly speaking, body weight is the measurement of mass without items located on the person. Practically though, body weight may be measured with clothes on, but without shoes or heavy accessories such as mobile phones and wallets, and using manual or digital weighing scales. Excess or reduced body weight is regarded as an indicator of determining a person's health, with body volume measurement providing an extra dimension by calculating the distribution of body weight.
Estimation in children
thumb|An example of a half unfolded Broselow tape
There are a number of methods to estimate weight in children for circumstances (such as emergencies) when actual weight cannot be measured. Most involve a parent or health care provider guessing the child's weight through weight-estimation formulas. These formulas base their findings on the child's age and tape-based systems of weight estimation. Of the many formulas that have been used for estimating body weight, some include the Advanced Pediatric Life Support formula, the Leffler formula, and Theron formula. The Broselow tape is based on length with weight read from the appropriate color area. Newer systems, such as the PAWPER tape, make use of a simple two-step process to estimate weight: the length-based weight estimation is modified according to the child's body habitus to increase the accuracy of the final weight prediction.
The Leffler formula is used for children 0–10 years of age.
Fluctuation
Body weight varies in small amounts throughout the day, as the amount of water in the body is not constant. It changes due to activities such as drinking, urinating, or exercise. Professional sports participants may deliberately dehydrate themselves to enter a lower weight class, a practice known as weight cutting.
Ideal body weight
Ideal body weight (IBW) was initially introduced by Ben J. Devine in 1974 to allow estimation of drug clearances in obese patients; researchers have since shown that the metabolism of certain drugs relates more to IBW than total body weight. The term was based on the use of insurance data that demonstrated the relative mortality for males and females according to different height-weight combinations.
The most common estimation of IBW is by the Devine formula; other models exist and have been noted to give similar results.
- Male ideal body weight = + × (height (cm) − 152)
- Female ideal body weight = + × (height (cm) − 152)
Usage
Sports
Many disciplines in weightlifting or combat sports separate competitors into weight classes.
Medicine
Ideal body weight, specifically the Devine formula, is used clinically for multiple reasons, most commonly in estimating renal function in drug dosing, and predicting pharmacokinetics in morbidly obese patients.
Average weight around the world
By region
Data from 2005:
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
!Region
!Adult <br /> population<br />(millions)
!Average weight
! % <br /> Overweight
!
|-
| Africa || 535 || || 28.9% ||
|-
| Europe || 606 || || 55.6% ||
|-
| || || || 25–64 || Measured || 2005 ||
|-
| || || || 18–69 || Measured || 2016 ||
|-
| || || || 18+ || Measured || 2018 ||
|-
| || || || 16+ || Measured || 2005 ||
|-
| || || || 25+ || Measured || 2009–2010 ||
|-
| || || || 18+ || Measured || 2008 ||
|-
| || || || 20+ || Measured || 2010 ||
|-
| || || || 18–69 || Measured || 2015 ||
|-
| || || || 18–69 || Measured || 2014 ||
|-
| || || || 15–69 || Measured || 2014 ||
|-
| || || || 20–74 || Measured || 2008–2009 ||
|-
| || || || 19+ || Measured || 2010–2011 ||
|-
| || || || 21–59 || Self-reported || 2021 ||
|-
| || || || 25–64 || Measured || 2013 ||
|-
| || || || 25–64 || Measured || 2010 ||
|-
| || || || 15+ || Measured || 2003 ||
|-
| || ||
|18–79
| Measured ||2007–2009
|
|-
| || || || 15+ || Measured || 2009–2010 ||
|-
| - San José || || || 20+ || Measured || 2010 ||
|-
| || || || 25–64 || Measured || 2016–2017 ||
|-
| || || || 18+ || Measured || 2003–2010 ||
|-
| || || || 15+ || Measured || 2005 ||
|-
| || || || 18–69 || Measured || 2016 ||
|-
| || || || 18+ || Self-reported || 2021 ||
|-
| || || || 16+ || Measured || 2020 ||
|-
| || || || 18+ || Self-reported || 2020 ||
|-
| || || || 18+ || Measured || 2017 ||
|-
| || || || 18–69 || Measured || 2013–2014 ||
|-
| || || || 15–64 || Measured || 2007–2008 ||
|-
| || || || 18–64 || Measured || 2012 ||
|-
| || || || 19+ || Measured || 2018 ||
|-
| || || || 15–64 || Measured || 2012–2013 ||
|-
| || || || 25–64 || Measured || 2007–2008 ||
|-
| || || || 25–64 || Measured || 2005 ||
|-
| || || || 20+ || Measured || 2013 ||
|-
| || || || 25–64 || Measured || 2009 ||
|-
| || || || 25–64 || Measured || 2006 ||
|-
| || || || 18+ || Measured || 2019 ||
|-
| || || || 18–64 || Measured || 2013 ||
|-
| || || || 18–69 || Measured || 2014–2015 ||
|-
| || || || 18–69 || Measured || 2016 ||
|-
| || || || 16–84 || Measured || 2003–2004 ||
|-
| || || || 15–64 || Measured || 2010 ||
|-
| || || || 25–64 || Measured || 2012 ||
|-
| || || || 15–64 || Measured || 2011 ||
|-
| || || || 15+ || Measured || 2017 ||
|-
| || || || 18–69 || Measured || 2018 ||
|-
| – England || || || 16+ || Measured || 2019 ||
|-
| – Wales || || || 16+ || Measured || 2009 ||
|-
| || || || 18+ ||Measured ||2020 ||
|-
| || || || 20+ || Measured || 2015–2018 ||
|}
Global statistics
Researchers at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine published a study of average weights of adult humans in the journal BMC Public Health and at the United Nations conference Rio+20.
{| class="wikitable sortable collapsible collapsed"
! Rank || Country || Kilograms || Pounds || Relative size
|-
| 1 || Micronesia || 87.398 ||
|-
| 2 || Tonga || 87.344 ||
|-
| 3 || United States || 81.928 ||
|-
| 4 || Samoa || 78.544 ||
|-
| 5 || Kuwait || 77.791 ||
|-
| 6 || Australia || 77.356 ||
|-
| 7 || Malta || 76.956 ||
|-
| 8 || Qatar || 76.866 ||
|-
| 9 || Croatia || 76.412 ||
|-
| 10 || United Kingdom || 75.795 ||
|-
| 11 || UAE || 75.532 ||
|-
| 12 || Greece || 75.038 ||
|-
| 13 || Cyprus || 74.802 ||
|-
| 14 || Egypt || 74.271 ||
|-
| 15 || Barbados || 73.831 ||
|-
| 16 || Belarus || 73.663 ||
|-
| 17 || Bahrain || 73.550 ||
|-
| 18 || Germany || 73.042 ||
|-
| 19 || Solomon Islands || 72.797 ||
|-
| 20 || Austria || 72.743 ||
|-
| 21 || Saudi Arabia || 72.638 ||
|-
| 22 || Iceland || 72.584 ||
|-
| 23 || Trinidad & Tobago || 72.538 ||
|-
| 24 || Argentina || 72.434 ||
|-
| 25 || Bahamas || 72.380 ||
|-
| 26 || Finland || 72.348 ||
|-
| 27 || Israel || 71.912 ||
|-
| 28 || Czech Rep. || 71.640 ||
|-
| 29 || New Zealand || 71.631 ||
|-
| 30 || Bulgaria || 71.459 ||
|-
| 31 || Russia || 71.418 ||
|-
| 32 || Slovenia || 71.200 ||
|-
| 33 || Slovakia || 71.060 ||
|-
| 34 || Albania || 71.019 ||
|-
| 35 || Bosnia || 71.001 ||
|-
| 36 || Switzerland || 70.987 ||
|-
| 37 || Rep. of Moldova || 70.978 ||
|-
| 38 || Venezuela || 70.788 ||
|-
| 39 || Chile || 70.593 ||
|-
| 40 || Georgia || 70.561 ||
|-
| 41 || Spain || 70.556 ||
|-
| 42 || Azerbaijan || 70.484 ||
|-
| 43 || Hungary || 70.443 ||
|-
| 44 || Libya || 70.429 ||
|-
| 45 || Luxembourg || 70.270 ||
|-
| 46 || Tajikistan || 70.234 ||
|-
| 47 || Portugal || 70.193 ||
|-
| 48 || Lithuania || 70.153 ||
|-
| 49 || Grenada || 70.139 ||
|-
| 50 || Panama || 69.939 ||
|-
| 51 || Ireland || 69.926 ||
|-
| 52 || Canada || 69.767 ||
|-
| 53 || Jordan || 69.649 ||
|-
| 54 || St Vincent & Grenadines || 69.590 ||
|-
| 55 || Belize || 69.377 ||
|-
| 56 || Poland || 69.241 ||
|-
| 57 || Macedonia || 69.209 ||
|-
| 58 || Italy || 69.205 ||
|-
| 59 || Jamaica || 69.064 ||
|-
| 60 || Sweden || 69.064 ||
|-
| 61 || Turkey || 69.046 ||
|-
| 62 || Cuba || 69.037 ||
|-
| 63 || Mexico || 69.023 ||
|-
| 64 || Mongolia || 68.910 ||
|-
| 65 || Uruguay || 68.873 ||
|-
| 66 || Belgium || 68.801 ||
|-
| 67 || Suriname || 68.778 ||
|-
| 68 || Latvia || 68.778 ||
|-
| 69 || Norway || 68.774 ||
|-
| 70 || Netherlands || 68.746 ||
|-
| 71 || Ukraine || 68.674 ||
|-
| 72 || Guatemala || 68.579 ||
|-
| 73 || Saint Lucia || 68.438 ||
|-
| 74 || Armenia || 68.424 ||
|-
| 75 || Nicaragua || 68.415 ||
|-
| 76 || Vanuatu || 68.229 ||
|-
| 77 || El Salvador || 68.220 ||
|-
| 78 || Lebanon || 68.170 ||
|-
| 79 || Ecuador || 68.166 ||
|-
| 80 || Fiji || 68.048 ||
|-
| 81 || Bolivia || 68.034 ||
|-
| 82 || Dominican Rep. || 67.993 ||
|-
| 83 || Denmark || 67.957 ||
|-
| 84 || Costa Rica || 67.853 ||
|-
| 85 || Tunisia || 67.726 ||
|-
| 86 || Iran || 67.608 ||
|-
| 87 || Turkmenistan || 67.563 ||
|-
| 88 || Paraguay || 67.445 ||
|-
| 89 || Peru || 67.440 ||
|-
| 90 || Syria || 67.422 ||
|-
| 91 || Guyana || 67.032 ||
|-
| 92 || France || 66.782 ||
|-
| 93 || Estonia || 66.732 ||
|-
| 94 || Equatorial Guinea || 66.451 ||
|-
| 95 || Romania || 66.401 ||
|-
| 96 || Colombia || 66.370 ||
|-
| 97 || Uzbekistan || 66.351 ||
|-
| 98 || Kazakhstan || 66.265 ||
|-
| 99 || Brazil || 66.093 ||
|-
| 100 || Mauritius || 66.052 ||
|-
| 101 || Iraq || 66.034 ||
|-
| 102 || Lesotho || 65.966 ||
|-
| 103 || Honduras || 65.834 ||
|-
| 104 || Oman || 65.803 ||
|-
| 105 || South Africa || 65.667 ||
|-
| 106 || Kyrgyzstan || 65.413 ||
|-
| 107 || Botswana || 65.045 ||
|-
| 108 || Cameroon || 64.832 ||
|-
| 109 || Morocco || 64.764 ||
|-
| 110 || South Korea || 64.392 ||
|-
| 111 || Mauritania || 64.179 ||
|-
| 112 || Algeria || 63.639 ||
|-
| 113 || Gabon || 62.845 ||
|-
| 114 || Ghana || 62.491 ||
|-
| 115 || Cape Verde || 62.296 ||
|-
| 116 || Papua New Guinea || 62.251 ||
|-
| 117 || Eswatini || 62.097 ||
|-
| 118 || Djibouti || 62.015 ||
|-
| 119 || Haiti || 61.698 ||
|-
| 120 || Comoros || 61.044 ||
|-
| 121 || Zimbabwe || 61.022 ||
|-
| 122 || Brunei || 60.945 ||
|-
| 123 || Sierra Leone || 60.854 ||
|-
| 124 || Nigeria || 60.745 ||
|-
| 125 || Malaysia || 60.682 ||
|-
| 126 || China || 60.555 ||
|-
| 127 || Angola || 60.387 ||
|-
| 128 || Senegal || 60.373 ||
|-
| 129 || Benin || 60.282 ||
|-
| 130 || Mali || 60.078 ||
|-
| 131 || Yemen || 59.802 ||
|-
| 132 || Philippines || 59.715 ||
|-
| 133 || Namibia || 59.584 ||
|-
| 134 || Sudan || 59.407 ||
|-
| 135 || Togo || 59.280 ||
|-
| 136 || Guinea || 59.112 ||
|-
| 137 || Japan || 59.017 ||
|-
| 138 || Pakistan || 58.976 ||
|-
| 139 || Singapore || 58.935 ||
|-
| 140 || Thailand || 58.786 ||
|-
| 141 || Côte d'Ivoire || 58.727 ||
|-
| 142 || Laos || 58.436 ||
|-
| 143 || Chad || 58.196 ||
|-
| 144 || Niger || 57.933 ||
|-
| 145 || Maldives || 57.647 ||
|-
| 146 || São Tomé and Príncipe || 57.561 ||
|-
| 147 || Burkina Faso || 57.456 ||
|-
| 148 || Congo || 57.384 ||
|-
| 149 || Tanzania || 57.293 ||
|-
| 150 || Gambia || 57.071 ||
|-
| 151 || Uganda || 57.007 ||
|-
| 152 || Afghanistan || 56.935 ||
|-
| 153 || Malawi || 56.681 ||
|-
| 154 || Rwanda || 56.635 ||
|-
| 155 || Myanmar || 56.354 ||
|-
| 156 || Kenya || 56.264 ||
|-
| 157 || Guinea-Bissau || 56.087 ||
|-
| 158 || Mozambique || 55.955 ||
|-
| 159 || Central African Rep. || 55.946 ||
|-
| 160 || Zambia || 55.910 ||
|-
| 161 || Cambodia || 55.742 ||
|-
| 162 || Liberia || 55.533 ||
|-
| 163 || Somalia || 55.375 ||
|-
| 164 || Madagascar || 55.157 ||
|-
| 165 || Burundi || 54.127 ||
|-
| 166 || Congo || 53.501 ||
|-
| 167 || Ethiopia || 53.057 ||
|-
| 168 || India || 52.943 ||
|-
| 169 || North Korea || 52.589 ||
|-
| 170 || Indonesia || 52.467 ||
|-
| 171 || Eritrea || 52.041 ||
|-
| 172 || Timor-Leste || 51.950 ||
|-
| 173 || Bhutan || 51.142 ||
|-
| 174 || Vietnam || 50.725 ||
|-
| 175 || Nepal || 50.476 ||
|-
| 176 || Sri Lanka || 50.421 ||
|-
| 177 || Bangladesh || 49.591 ||
|- style="color:#00000;background:#dddddd;"
| — || world average || 61.997 ||
|}
See also
- Anthropometry
- Bergmann's rule
- Birth weight
- Body mass index (BMI)
- Classification of obesity
- Emaciation
- Hesse's Rule
- History of anthropometry
- Human height
- List of heaviest people
- Obesity
- Overweight
- Set point theory
- Thermoregulation in humans
- Underweight
- Weight loss and weight gain
- Weight phobia (disambiguation)
- Exercise paradox